Love and War
by ZoetheBrave
Summary: Three girls from 2009 are sent to 1944 after their mysteriously timed deaths and one of them is Nixon's sister? Follow Faye, Mallory, and Violet through their adventures with the Band of Brothers. Winters/OC Nixon/OC Speirs/OC
1. Faye, Violet, and Mallory

**Faye**

On a June afternoon, the droning of my history professor was drowned out by the ringing of the school's bell. After grabbing my bag, I dashed for the door, weaving my way in and out of other students. I raced out of the building and into the street as soon as the 'walk' signal flashed at me. I started across the road, elated that I was free for the rest of the day, but as I approached the halfway point of the crosswalk, a scream drew my attention to the speeding gold Cadillac moments before it hit me. I had absolutely no time to react; I felt myself flying; floating; falling. I hit the ground hard and rolled to a stop, head cracking loudly against the warm asphalt with a sickening thud. I remember musing that it sounded like a watermelon being thrown onto the ground as my vision dimmed. The last sense of consciousness I knew before slipping under the cover of darkness was the screeching of tires and a woman's screams for an ambulance.

I know not how long I lay in darkness, but slowly, the light began to seep back into my world. My vision was blurry, but I could tell that I was, somehow, somewhere in a forest and the light of day was fading fast. I groaned as the throbbing pain in my head and my left side became known to me. Suddenly, I heard rustling on my left.

"Flash!" somebody, a man, hissed.

Before my mind caught up to my mouth, I had already muttered back the all-too-familiar code from my favorite WWII series, Band of Brothers.

"Thunder."

Two blurry, yet slightly familiar faces swam into my vision.

"Who are- Christ! It's a broad!"

I let out a weak snort.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we've got a genius on our hands," I had time to retort before my vision once more went black. Through the inky darkness, though, I could still hear the voices, as if from through a long tunnel.

"Joe, can you carry her? We need to get her to Doc Roe and CP."

"Sure. Help me lift her up. I'll…"

The voices faded into silence, and I was once more left in utter darkness and complete silence.

I was alone.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Violet**

I looked at my watch again as I strolled down the sidewalk, making my way up to the synagogue where I was supposed to meet my friend -and housemate- Faye. She wanted to see her grandparents (as she called them) before we headed to our dance lesson. Our other housemate, Mallory, would meet us at the studio after she got off from work.

Faye's grandparents were actually not related to her at all. They found her when she was about seven years old. Abandoned in the middle of nowhere (which was actually somewhere in Jersey), she was adopted and brought back to Texas with the Jewish couple. Now a college freshman in Richmond, Virginia, she was one of my two best friends.

My eyes registered the time on the watch face. I had fifteen minutes before I was supposed to meet Faye, but I had nothing better to do. After I arrived at the synagogue, I leaned against the wall to wait, nodding to a few other idlers in greeting. I was there but five minutes when the screeching of tires brought my eyes to the gold Caddy speeding by. I barely had time to register the loud blasts before a searing pain and a sharp impact with my neck sent my head cracking back into the wall behind me before I collapsed in a heap. Through a gray haze, I was dimly aware of screaming and someone's hands on my neck, trying to stop the blood flow.

_It's no use,_ I thought as I drifted away. _I'm already dead._

For the next I-don't-know-how-long, I flitted in and out of consciousness. Somewhere during that time, voices began to tune in and out, speaking in hushed whispers.

"…blood on her neck."

"I don't see a wound."

"No, but she's got a bump on the back of her head…"

"…her to CP. Maybe someone…"

"…who she is."

Soon, the voices tuned out to silence, and I was once more left in solitude.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Mallory**

I looked once more at the clock on the wall. 11:43, it read, and the phone in my hand was as silent as ever. I tried their numbers once more. No answer. Throwing down the phone in disgust, I jumped up from the couch I was perched on the edge of. Marching across the room, I snatched my car keys from the counter and grabbed my bag out of habit before stomping out the door. Anxiously, I hurried out of the little house my friends and I shared and headed to my car, failing in my worry to notice the black clouds roiling over my head. The very moment I placed my hand on the door handle, an enormous crash rent the silence into pieces. Seconds later, I felt white hot, blinding pain roaring through every fiber of my being, leaving me to collapse into the embrace of darkness.

After coasting through the inky abyss for what seemed to me like years, my heavy eyelids finally obeyed my command and fluttered open, revealing a dark sky through many trees. The sky was occasionally illuminated by flashes of light, soon followed by muffled thuds. To my right, I heard twigs snapping. I opened my mouth to call out, but discovered a searing pain in my throat. In fact, my whole body seemed to be buzzing with the fiery pain.

The rustling stopped.

"Flash," somebody hissed.

I lay in silence, surprised by the old code. Stunned for a moment, I made no attempt to alleviate the stranger's suspicions. Suddenly, a shot rang out and I felt a bullet rip through the ground by my foot. Ignoring the screaming pain in my throat, I managed to croak out, "Thunder! For the love of God, thunder!"

After a second of silence, another incredulous voice exclaimed, "Jesus!"

I heard steps beside me, and someone, a man, knelt next to me.

"Shit," he muttered.

My eyelids fell shut once more, despite my feeble attempts to keep them open. The abyss enveloped me once more and whatever was said next was cut off as I passed out.


	2. Can I have a Gun?

The sun had risen almost completely when the group of men, including George Luz and Joe Liebgott (the latter of which was toting an unconscious Faye) re-entered their post.

"Hey, Skip!" Luz called to the passing Skip Muck, "Can you go find Doc Roe? We found someone on patrol and we need to get 'er checked out."

Skip raised his eyebrows. "'Her?'"

Liebgott rolled his eyes impatiently. "Yes, 'her.' Go find Doc, would ya?"

Skip walked off, shaking his head. "Alright, alright. Geez."

After a few minutes, Eugene Roe trotted up to them.

"Alright, what happened? Skip says you found some girl on your patrol?"

Liebgott turned slightly so that Faye was revealed.

"We found her a little ways into the woods," Luz explained. "She was just layin' there. Don't know who she is or where she came from, but she knew the password."

Roe inspected the unconscious girl. Deeming that she was in no immediate danger, he told them to move her inside. Not long after they had laid her on one of the cots set up for the injured, they were joined by Richard Winters and Lewis Nixon.

"What's going on here?" Nixon asked good naturedly. "A few of the boys were saying that you guys found a dame in the woods. She a native, or German, or what?"

Liebgott shrugged. "Think she's American. Didn't sound like she had an accent when she spoke, did she George?"

Luz shook his head. "Nah, she sounded pretty American to me." Moving over to the doorway, he said, "If you'll excuse me, I gotta go see a man about a dog." Throwing a salute to the superior officers, he ducked out of the room.

The Cajun medic of Easy Company took the time to inspect Faye more thoroughly for injuries. Satisfied that she was in perfectly good health, he stood up and shrugged at Winters and Nixon. "She looks fine," he admitted. "My only guess is that she's in shock, and her body shut down as a sort of defense. She'll probably wake up soon enough."

Winters glanced up from Faye's still form to the medic. "Thanks Gene." The Cajun nodded and moved on to other invalids, keeping Faye in eyesight in case she woke up.

Nixon crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, frowning. "Now, I guess we wait. We can question her when she wakes up."

Liebgott, who had been eying the unconscious girl, suddenly spoke up.

"Lieutenant Nixon."

"Yes, private?" Nixon wasn't really paying attention; his eyes were wandering around the aid station.

"Permission to speak, sir?"

"Permission granted."

"Stop me if I'm wrong, sir, but doesn't she look a lot like you?"

That definitely caught the intelligence officer's attention, and his eyes snapped back to the private before traveling down to the girl on the cot.

"Yeah, come to think of it," Winters added slowly, "she does look a lot like you, Nix. You two could be related. You got a sister?" He was only half joking.

Nixon's eyes were trained on the wall at the other end of the room as he replied tightly, "Yeah. She disappeared twelve years ago."

While the other soldiers' eyes were on the suddenly irate lieutenant, neither of them noticed Faye's eyes flutter open. It was only when she let out a groan and sat up, clutching her head, that their attention returned to her. Doc Roe was at her side immediately, helping her stay upright as she blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision.

"Are you alright, miss?" Roe asked her gently. Faye had eyes only for Nixon, however, and was looking at him strangely.

"You look really familiar," she said, as if she hadn't heard the Cajun medic's inquiry. "Have we met before?"

Suddenly, she seemed to remember where exactly she was, and the panicked edge crept back into her voice.

"Forget that! What day is it? Where am I, and how did I get here?"

Doc Roe grabbed onto her arm gently, causing her to look at him.

"Whoa there, miss. Calm down. Yo' with Easy Company in No'mandy, and it's the eighth of June. Two of our boys found you during a patrol. Joe here carried you back."

Faye looked up to meet the dark eyes of a rather cute soldier who looked only a few years older than herself.

"We found you lying in the middle of the woods," He explained. "Long story short, we said 'flash,' you said 'thunder,' we brought you here." He frowned thoughtfully. "By the way, how do you know our code? You can't be a soldier, and the only women that know it are field nurses. Easy doesn't have any field nurses."

Faye sighed and held her head in her hands, trying to sort her thoughts. Suddenly, the Doc's words struck her, and her head shot up.

"Wait a minute! You said we're in Normandy?"

The men nodded.

"And you said this is Easy Company? Of the US Army?" But the army hasn't been in Normandy since…oh no. Ooh no. Nononononono… That's it. I've lost it. I've finally gone crazy."

The men exchanged looks as Faye kept muttering to herself with her head on her arms.

"I think I'm dead. Yeah, that's it. The car killed me, and I'm having a sort of out-of-body experience before I move on."

Nixon spoke up for the first time in her presence.

"Car? What car? Whatever it was, it couldn't have killed you, because you're obviously still here."

Faye groaned.

"No I'm not! I mean, I'm here, but I'm not where I was when I was hit! I was hit in the middle of Richmond in the year 2009! 'Here' is in the middle of France in 1944! I most certainly am not where I am supposed to be!"

The men were flabbergasted.

"2009," Winters repeated, as if to make sure he heard her correctly. Faye nodded miserably. "How did you get here?"

Faye had dropped her head back onto her arms, so her next reply was muffled.

"I told you. I'm dead."

Doc Roe touched her arm to get her attention.

"Well, miss," he said gently, "you got a pretty nasty bump on yo' head, so I'm gonna ask you a few questions to make sure you don't have a concussion. If everythin' is alright, you should be able to remembuh everythin'."

Faye nodded again.

"Okay, uh, who is the current president?"

"It's 1944, right?"

"Yes ma'am."

"FDR. Speaking of, he's gonna die soon."

The Roe glanced at Winters, who shrugged, as if to say, 'what can you do?'

"How old are you?"

"Nineteen."

"Where were you born?"

Faye opened her mouth to answer, but abruptly closed it again.

"I-I don't know."

She rubbed her face as Doc asked, "You can't remembuh?"

Faye sighed, frustrated, blowing a piece of hair out of her eyes.

"No, I don't _know_ where I was born. The people who raised me found me when I was seven or so. I don't really remember where I lived before that. The only thing I have from before then is this."

She pulled out an old photo from an inside pocket of her jacket. It showed a young boy in his early teens standing outside with his arm around an even younger girl. On the back of the photo, in a spidery scrawl, was written 'Faye and Lewis; 1931.'

"The people who took me in decided to name me Faye, after the girl in the picture. They supposed she was related to me somehow."

Doc passed the picture to Winters, who looked at it, then handed it to Nixon. As soon as he caught sight of the two kids, he covered his face with his hand.

XXX XXX XXX

**Faye**

"Faye," Winters said quietly, causing me to look up at him. Before he got a chance to continue, however, the doorway was darkened by a soldier supporting another, smaller, person. Her arm was around the soldier's shoulder and her hair was curtaining her face. Her neck and shirt were drenched in blood. All of the blood drained from my face and all of the previous conversation was forgotten in an instant as I scrambled up, shrieking "Violet!"

My friend looked up at the sound of her name, saw the look of worry on my face, and hurriedly assured me that she was fine. "I'm alright Faye," she said soothingly as the soldier helped her sit down on the bed that I not a minute before had vacated. "I've just got a bump on my head the size of London, is all."

I kneeled down in front of her and inspected her neck, where the blood seemed to originate.

"Then where in Einstein's name did all of this blood come from?"

My hands fluttered around the poor girl's neck in search of a wound. I paused when she flinched as my fingertips ran over a small bump. Gently wiping blood away to get a better look, I caught sight of what appeared to be a healed bullet hole.

"Violet!" I exclaimed, appalled "This is a bullet wound! Only, it's all healed, so it can't possibly be new, but you're never…" Sudden realization hit me when I remembered my own healed injuries from the car that hit me. "Vi," I said slowly, "You died, didn't you?"

Having already realized what must have happened to her, my friend nodded. "I was waiting for you in front of the Synagogue," she explained. "Someone in a gold caddy drove by and shot it up. Hit me in the neck." She gestured at the scar. "It severed the carotid; I bled out. Bull here found me in the woods." She pointed to the man who brought her in and I turned to look at him. He nodded to me in acknowledgment and I smiled warmly at him before turning back to Violet.

"You got shot by someone in a gold caddy?" I asked incredulously as a grin spread over my face. "That's so fracken cool! I was run over by the caddy as they were making what I suppose to be their getaway! That's how I got here."

Violet laughed at me and rolled her eyes. "Leave it to you to think it's awesome that we were killed by the same person," she chuckled, shaking her head. At last, she decided to look around. "By the way, where are we? I'da thought that heaven would be a little more…well, white."

I snorted. "You're in Normandy, Vi, and it's 1944. We're in the middle of World War Two. My only guess is that we were sent here when we died, probably because we have a purpose here. It's two days after D-Day, and we're with Easy Company."

Violet sat in silence for a while. After a few minutes, though, she grinned widely. "We're in the middle of WWII with Easy? As in Easy Company of the US Army?" Her words almost copied mine, causing me to smile internally. After confirming her inquiry, I received a loud squeal from my older friend in return.

"OhmyGawd, that is so cool!" She looked up at the men that surrounded us. "Can I have a gun?"

I slapped my forehead, groaning, "I can't take you anywhere."

Doc Roe smiled slightly at Violet. "You're taking this quite well, then."

Violet shrugged and tossed her auburn hair over her shoulder. "Dude, I just died; it's gonna take a little more than a war to shake me. So!" she rubbed her hands together, grinning mischievously. "Can I have a gun?"


	3. Moving Out

I placed my hand over Violet's mouth to stop any further requests that were doomed to end badly and turned to the men who were looking at us strangely.

"If you want to live to see tomorrow, I suggest you don't give her one," I said earnestly, only half joking. Suddenly, I pulled my hand away from Violet's mouth with a squeal and turned my palm up to reveal a long trail of saliva. I glared at Violet, who stuck her tongue out at me. Before I could throttle her, however, a call from the door brought our attention to a tall man holding an unmoving form in his arms.

"Well," he said, surprised, "I guess the men weren't joking when they said two other women appeared out of nowhere."

I barely registered what he was saying as I realized just what it was that he was carrying.

"Mallory!" Violet cried, beating me to the punch. We both scrambled up so the man could set our friend down. Our friend's auburn hair was tousled and had a few leaves in it. Other than that, she looked perfectly fine, save for shiny pink scars that snaked down her right arm in a pattern that looked eerily reminiscent of lightning.

"Let me guess," Nixon said as I leaned over my friend, searching for signs of life in her pale face, "you found her on patrol, right, Ron?"

The man nodded. "By the railroad."

Satisfied that our friend was alive, I scooted over to let Doc Roe take a look at her. Violet grabbed my hand and I squeezed it reassuringly. "I wonder who's next," I whispered to her, only half joking. "Stacy? Christy? Tim?"

Violet snorted as Doc said, "She seems fine. I don't see any injuries, and her breathing and heartbeat are regular."

Leaning over her, Violet patted her cheek.

"Mallory? Wake up, love."

When she got no response, she whacked her head, earning a groan from the poor girl. "You're fine. Get up and stop being such a baby."

I gaped at her. "Violet Elder!" I reprimanded, appalled at her brutality. "She just died, give her a break!"

She huffed and crossed her arms. "So? We just died too, remember?"

The men around us shifted slightly, a bit unnerved by our nonchalant talk of dying. Mallory's sea-green eyes fluttered open and she looked around blearily, blinking to clear her vision. When she spotted me, she smiled, but when her attention fell on Violet, she socked her in the arm, glaring. She opened her mouth to speak, but abruptly closed it again, pressing a hand to her throat.

"It hurts her to talk," I translated for the soldiers' benefit, when she finally resorted to sign language. (Her little brother was deaf, so we all learned to make things easier for him.) "She went to look for us when we didn't come home, and…she got struck by lightning. Uh, she woke up in the trees, sorry, forest, and…" I trailed off, mouth hanging open in shock. I turned to glare furiously at the man who had brought her in. "You shot her?" I screeched, furious.

Speirs held up his hands in defense. "We thought she was a kraut," he snapped back at me. "She didn't respond to the password, so we assumed she was the enemy! Besides, it's not like I hit her!"

"That's not the bloody point!" I shrilled, but my tirade was cut short by Mallory, who tugged on my sleeve and frantically signed to me that it wasn't his fault. That didn't stop my glare, however, and I hissed, "I'll be watching you."

I turned back to Mallory and signed discreetly back, 'you're only sticking up for him because you think he's cute.' The girl blushed and hid her face with her hair while Violet and I giggled. Eventually, we got Mallory up to speed on what the heck was going on and she, like Violet, took it very well, but neglected (thankfully) to ask for a gun.

"Well," Winters sighed, "what are we going to do? We have three girls," seeing my glare, he hastily amended, "Uh, women" (I smiled) "with us, and we're in the middle of a war. We're moving out soon, so we need to make a decision quick."

Nixon rubbed his face and sighed. "We can take them to Sink," he said slowly, "or they could…come with us?"

"No way in hell!" exclaimed Speirs. "They'll get themselves, or us, killed!"

Violet glared viciously at him. "Now wait just a minute here!" she spat. "I'll have you know that-"

Once more, she was cut off by our hands clapping over her mouth.

Looking up at Winters, I spoke for all of us when I said coolly, "We want to fight."

Speirs was outraged. "But you're women!" he sputtered.

He was met by three glares, and Violet's muttered, "Thank you, captain obvious."

Violet and I snickered, but soon returned to the topic of warfare.

"We know how to fight," Violet explained coolly. "We have years of lessons in martial arts and we know how to handle a gun. Hell, Mallory even makes her own explosives. We don't even have to be on the front-line. We have medical training also, and I'm sure you don't have enough medics to be everywhere at once." She looked over at Doc Roe for confirmation and smirked triumphantly when he confirmed her suspicions.

"See?" I sniffed, crossing my arms. "We are _not _helpless; we know how to take care of ourselves and we would _never_ compromise your companies, and you don't have to worry about saving our asses because we don't _do_ damseling and we're not too good at distress. Whether you boys like it or not, we're going with you, and there's nothing you can do to stop us."

Violet and Mallory high-fived me when I finished, and we sat with smug smiles on our faces, waiting. Finally, Winters caved. "Alright, fine. You'll stay with Doc Roe and help him as medics. We'll find each of you each a uniform, a hand-gun and some basic equipment. We're moving out in 20 minutes. Don't be late. Doc, can you get these women supplied?"

Roe nodded and, one by one, the men left until only the good doctor was left with us girls. "Wow," I muttered, surprised. "That was easier than I had anticipated."

Violet was positively beaming. "They're giving me a gun!" she cackled, frighteningly ecstatic.

"Better kiss your ass goodbye then," I muttered to Mallory, who grinned at me. Just then, I was slapped in the back of the head. Rolling my eyes as I rubbed my head, I turned to Doc Roe and asked if we could get changed into the uniforms. He nodded and disappeared into another room, only to return a few minutes later holding three stacks of clothing and three pairs of boots.

"These are the smallest sizes we had," he explained, handing them to us. "I'll leave you fo' a bit, and you can get changed."

Violet and I thanked him as he made his way to the door. Five minutes later, we were all lacing up our boots when a knock sounded from the door.

"Come i~in," Violet called in a singsong voice.

The door creaked open and Doc Roe peeked in before entering fully. "I've gotten you some basic supplies and yo' guns." He tossed a pack to each of us and then reached back outside to pull three other familiar bags inside. "I believe these are yo's," he explained. "The boys found 'em with you."

I squealed and jumped up to grab the bags. Opening mine up to make sure everything was still there, I did a little victory dance. Everything from my I-pod to my extra clothes was still intact. I chucked Mallory and Violet's bags at their respective owners and proceeded to riffle through my own in search of my handy-dandy Swiss knife.

"**Yatta**!" I exclaimed triumphantly, producing the knife. I bent to tuck the knife into my boot and when I straightened up, Mallory chucked something at my head. Catching it at the last second, I saw that Violet had been attacked by a similar package.

"Cherry bombs," Mallory signed. "If we're gonna be in the middle of a war, we're gonna need something better than a pistol." Violet nodded in enthusiastic agreement, elated at the fact that she was in possession of something dangerous.

Doc Roe carefully handed us our guns and holsters. "These are only fo' an emergency," he warned. "Don't go shootin' the first thing that moves, alright?"

"Of course," I promised, and jabbed the silent Violet, none too gently with my elbow.

"Alright, alright, fine!" she grumbled and crossed her arms sulkily.

I patted her head. "Good girl."

She slapped my hand away with a growl and proceeded to pack all of her belongings into one bag. Once all of our stuff was ready to go, we shouldered our bags, strapped on our guns, and followed Doc Roe outside to merge with the crowd of soldiers that was forming in the streets.

A couple of the men came over to us one of them introduced the group.

"George Luz," he introduced himself, shaking our hands respectively. "I was one of the guys who found you," he said to me. "And this is Frank Perconte," he gestured to a short Italian behind him, who nodded to us, "Don Malarkey," (the man next to him) who shook our hands also, (I suspect Violet just barely restrained herself from making a comment), "and Joe Toye." The man behind Malarkey also nodded to us.

"Nice to meet you," he said.

Anything that anyone was going to say next was interrupted by a call from in front of them. "Let's go first platoon! Easy's moving out! On your feet!"

"Who's that?" Violet whispered to Luz.

"First Lieutenant Harry Welsh," the soldier replied just as quietly before the man announced the news.

"Listen up! It'll be dark soon. I want light and noise discipline from here on. No talking, no smoking, and no playing 'grab fanny' with the man in front of you, Luz."

A chorus of chuckles issued from the men and we were all grinning as we glanced at Luz, who only smirked and winked at us. Violet nudged me and Mallory.

"Uh-oh," she whispered, only half joking. "We poor, innocent girls had best watch out, lest we be the ones in front of him."

I grinned and turned back to the Lieutenant. "…General Taylor's taking the whole division."

"Remember boys," Luz said in an imitation of the General. "Give me three days and three nights of hard fightin', and you will be relieved."

The men laughed and shook their heads. Lieutenant Welsh smiled as another soldier volunteered to take point. He then turned to another young man and said, "Blithe. Glad you could join us."

The man nodded. "Thank you, sir."

"First platoon, fall in behind Fox Company. You people from second and third platoon, follow us. Shake a leg."

George took this time to make another crack as we departed. "Another thing to remember boys, flies spread disease, so keep yours closed."

We were all laughing as we left the town. The humor kept us so well occupied that the thought barely flitted across our minds. We were going to war.

Not all of us were coming back.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**The 'damseling' line isn't entirely mine. I believe James Patterson is to be given credit.**

**Yatta- **basically, like "yes!" or "woohoo!"


	4. Carentan

**XXX XXX XXX**

"_Another thing to remember boys, flies spread disease, so keep yours closed."_

_We were all laughing as we left the town. The humor kept us so well occupied that the thought barely flitted across our minds. We were going to war._

_And not all of us were coming back._

-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-c-

_**Violet's POV**_

Soon, it was dark, and we were walking through a mess of water, fire, debris, and corpses. I felt Mallory and Faye close behind me as we skirted another burned body. In front of us, I heard distant gunshots and somebody, Hoobler, I remembered; mutter "We lost F Company."

Perconte, who appeared out of nowhere, scoffed. "Again?"

A few men were sent to look for F Company a few minutes before Winters and Nixon walked up. By then, the girls and I were huddled together, murmuring softly amongst ourselves.

"What do you think happened to them?" Mallory signed.

I shrugged as Winters said, "did you send somebody?"

"Yeah, I got Hoobler and Blithe out there now," Welsh replied shortly.

"Why are we stopped?" Nix asked impatiently.

"This is about officers crapping out on their training, Nix," Winters replied, scratching his hand absently. He sighed after a moment. "Come on. Let's get this show on the road."

Nixon walked past us and nodded in acknowledgement, soon followed by Winters. They made their way in the direction that Hoobler and Blithe had gone, and soon disappeared into the trees.

"I hope everyone is alright," I murmured. Faye and Mallory nodded as we settled down to await the return of our COs. Maybe ten minutes had gone by before I saw figures moving in the tree line. I crouched, pulling Mallory and Faye down with me, my hand instantly going to the holster at my hip. In the corner of my eye, I noticed Faye and Mallory getting ready to arm themselves also. We waited in complete silence for several heart-stopping seconds with bated breath before the figures were close enough to recognize.

I sighed in relief as Faye said quietly, "it's our guys."

I smiled tightly, standing up again. "And they've found F company."

We greeted the returning men as we went on the move again. The next day, we found ourselves approaching Carentan. We were at the back of the company as we waited, crouched in the road, for the order to move. Suddenly, first platoon broke away and headed up the road in a stooped run. I sprung up, knowing our time to move was soon, and followed the rest of the men.

Suddenly, sharp shots rang through the still air and a few men from first went down. A scream pierced the stunned silence, "GET DOWN! GET DOWN!"

I froze, crouched in a ditch. More shots rang out and I sat in disbelief. This was actually happening. There was a large chance that I was going to die (again) in this town in the middle of France. I couldn't move, couldn't make a sound, and my breath was coming in rapid, shallow gasps, sending me on my way to hyperventilation. Suddenly, a stinging pain brought me to my senses. Mallory, with fire and worry in her sea-green eyes, held her hand poised over my cheek. She was ever silent, but I understood what she was trying to tell me. _Get a grip girl. You weren't sent here just to die._

Shaking my head, I nodded fiercely and gripped her shoulder before standing back up and taking in the situation. Beside me, I heard another slap and knew that Faye had frozen too. Thank God for Mallory, or we might as well have been dead women walking.

Bullets ripped up the ground around the men in front of me, and sudden realization hit me.

_It's like shooting fish in a barrel…_ "GET GOING!" I shouted at them. "MOVE!"

Down the line, Nixon had the same thought as me.

"You're in the open, for Pete's sake!"

Winters shot up and started urging the men on.

"GO! GO!"

He continued yelling at the men to move, and while some of them did, many others stayed, frozen like I had been. I ran up to them and started pulling them out of the ditches, ignoring the bullets whizzing around me.

"GET YOUR SORRY ASSES UP! DO YOU WANT TO GET US ALL KILLED?" Faye screamed from behind me, pulling two men out of the ditch. Winters nodded to us gratefully as the men shook off their stupor and started hauling ass into the town.

Around us, dirt was flying with bullets and men were shouting out the positions of the snipers, but all we could hear was the pounding of our own racing hearts in our ears as we raced for the cover of the buildings. In the confusion, we were separated from Second platoon.

"Shit!" I exclaimed. "What do we do?"

Faye let out a slight scream as a soldier nearby was dropped by a sniper. Mallory darted out from behind our building and grabbed the dead private's M-1. She dove back beside us just as a bullet blasted off a corner of the building.

"We'll stay here until we find someone from 2nd," she signed, "and we'll take out krauts from here while the others go in."

Faye and I stared at her in amazement. "Where the hell did that come from?" Faye asked incredulously.

Mallory shrugged.

"Halo 3?" I asked with a smirk.

She shot me a glare and promptly turned her back on us, peeking around the corner. She pulled back quickly as another shot rang out and grimly shoved in a new clip, readying the weapon for its future victims. As she looked me in the eyes, I saw the last trace of innocence fade from her own as she prepared herself to take the lives of others to see us safely through this war. It was then that I shed all previous fears of injury or death and embraced the fact that I too would do anything to get my friends out of this alive, even if it meant forfeiting my own life.

Before Mallory stepped out to take a shot at the sniper, I pulled her back and hugged her tightly. "Don't go being a twat, now. If you get yourself killed, I will never speak to you again."

She pulled back and smiled slightly. Straining to speak, she managed to whisper hoarsely, "I wouldn't give you the satisfaction."

Taking a deep breath, she gave us one last smirk, and popped around the corner, dropping to one knee, and sighting along the rifle. Crack! The concrete by her shoulder exploded, but she gave it no nevermind. Her finger hugged the trigger, and with one sharp crack, the sniper fell to the floor of the room he was holed up in with a curse on his lips and a bullet in his brain.

Faye pulled Mallory back behind the wall just as Buck Compton, George Luz, Bill Guarnere and Don Malarkey dove around the corner.

"Oh!" Malarkey exclaimed when he noticed us. The rest of the guys stared at us in surprise. Spotting the rifle in Mallory's hand, Buck said, "You were the one who took out the sniper?"

Mallory nodded, and the guys whistled. Just then, the ground near us exploded and Buck shouted, "Mortars!"

When the dust cleared, I peeked around the corner to locate the pair of krauts who manned the mortars. Farther down the street, I saw a head appear over a low wall, and a man shouted harshly in German and pointed to me.

I hid again and caught sight of Faye pulling her head back as well. "Well, Miss Softball," she said to me, holding out a grenade, "it's your time to shine."

The corner of my mouth twitched in the ghost of a smile and I grabbed the grenade from her hand. Settling against the wall, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and steeled myself for what I was about to do.

"What is she...?"

I cut Luz off by springing out from behind the wall. I was completely vulnerable, with no cover whatsoever. Praying to whatever God was listening that there were no more snipers in this block, I gritted my teeth, yanked the pin from the grenade and threw it with all my might at the wall the krauts were hiding behind. At the exact moment the grenade detonated, I heard the crack of a gun, and a searing pain ripped through my right thigh as Faye screamed.

With a cry of pain, I fell to the ground as my leg gave way. Another bullet whizzed over my head before the ground rushed up to meet me. As my vision wavered, strong hands reached out and dragged me back under cover, causing me to groan in pain when my leg was jostled.

"Medic!" Faye screamed.

"Someone go find Doc Roe," Buck yelled as Mallory ripped open the leg of my ODs. I hissed when her fingers gently probed the wound, inspecting the bloody mess.

"It missed the femoral artery," Faye announced for Mallory, who had grabbed a handkerchief and pressed it over the wound to stop the bleeding. A few moments later, Malarkey ran up.

"There's an aid station set up just a few streets over," he panted. "Doc Roe told us to bring her there."

Faye helped me sit up. "Can you walk?" she asked anxiously.

I grimaced as I stood up. "Of course!" I replied indignantly, but my leg gave me away when it collapsed the instant I put my weight on it. Rolling his eyes, Buck easily picked me up and slung me over his shoulder. "Hey!" I cried. "Put me down! I don't need any help!"

Luz rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you made that obvious when you fell down."

Any further complaints were ignored in a similar fashion as we made our way to the Aid Station. Buck dropped me off in a chair near the door and went to see Winters who, as we had heard from another young soldier, had been injured by a ricochet. Exhausted, I leaned my head back against the wall. I had been unable to sleep the night before and it was starting to catch up with me. I started to doze until a deep voice brought my eyes fluttering open and my heart leaping to my throat.

"What the hell happened here?"

My eyes locked on those of Lieutenant Speirs and my breath caught in my throat. His gaze was smoldering with some suppressed intensity and I found that I had to look away to continue thinking coherently.

"How the hell did you get yourself injured?" he demanded irately. "I thought you said that you could take care of yourselves!"

Faye stepped in front of him and pointed a finger at his chest. "Now listen here buddy," she hissed, jabbing him with her finger. "Violet risked a hell of a lot more than quite a few of your little soldier-boys here to take out a group of Germans who were trying to kill us, thank you very much!"

Mallory tugged on Faye's arm, trying to silence her, but before she could continue, Guarnere spoke up. "It's true, sir," he said. "Miss Cutler here risked getting hit by a sniper or somethin' to take out a couple o' krauts with mortars that was tryin' to blow our asses up."

He glanced at me and the girls and added, "Excuse my French."

Faye and I waved him off. "'S alright," I mumbled. "We've heard worse."

"We've _said_ worse," Faye muttered, looking away. Mallory jabbed her with her elbow as Speirs turned his gaze back on me. After a few nerve-wracking moments, he finally said quietly, "I guess I should be thanking you, then, for your help."

I felt the heat creeping into my face and had to look away as I muttered, "It's not me who you should be thanking. Mallory is the one who took out the sniper."

"Thank you, then."

The speaker, however, was not Speirs. My head jerked up to see Nixon and Winters standing in the doorway. Nixon, being the one that had spoken, had his eyes trained on Mallory, who was blushing to the roots of her auburn hair. Grinning, I nudged Faye, who looked at me blankly.

"Wha-" I pointed at Mallory and then gestured discreetly to the Lieutenant that was causing the blush. "Ooooh." An evil grin spread across her face as she thought of the many ways to put her evil matchmaking skills to use.

"Don't let it get out of hand," I warned her quietly, raising my eyebrows at the look she gave me. "I'm serious. You know what happened last time."

Faye's eyes took on a distant look as she traveled back in time to the last unfortunate ending of her matchmaking and she rubbed her belly absently, wincing. "Oooh. Right. Ouch."

We turned back to Mallory, who had just replied softly, "It was nothing, really."

Nixon smiled at her, causing her face to grow darker than her hair. "Well, you must be one hell of a marksman-er, woman."

Mallory hid her face behind her hair and, in a fit of helpfulness, Faye offered, "Her father was a sniper in the Marine Corps. She's been able to shoot a gun since before she could walk. Well, figuratively anyways."

Before anyone else could say anything else, Doc Roe appeared.

"What's the problem, Miss Elder?" he asked as he squatted beside me. Before I could answer, however, he had already spotted the blood on my ODs and the handkerchief. "Shot in the thigh," I muttered lamely.

Doc Roe stood and helped me up as well.

"Let's get you over to the table here," he said, helping me hobble into the next room. I sat on the table and propped my leg up, wincing as the wounded muscles pulled. For the next ten minutes or so, Doc Roe fished out the slug, sewed the hole up, and bandaged it.

"Thanks a lot," I breathed, extremely grateful that the pain had lessened.

He smiled slightly and helped me off of the table.

"Well, hopefully, this will be the last time you'll have to get yo'self patched up. I don't want to see you in an aid station again unless yo' the one doin' the patchin' up, alright?"

I smiled back at him and tested my leg. Stable.

"I'll see what I can do," I replied, flashing him a smile before re-joining my friends outside.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**I feel so stupid when I try to Cajun-ify Roe's speech. Bleh…**


	5. Grief

Still in Carentan. Here it is; Mallory's PoV!

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"_Well, hopefully, this will be the last time you'll have to get patched up. I don't want to see you in an aid station again, alright?"_

_I smiled back at him and tested my leg. Stable._

"_I'll see what I can do," I replied, flashing him a smile before re-joining my friends outside._

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_**Mallory's POV**_

We went outside to wait for Violet because the room was slowly filling with the wounded. Once out of the room, Lieutenant Speirs left us, claiming he had his company to look after. As he passed by another group of men, Luz shuddered and said, "That man scares the shit out of me."

The lieutenants and I cracked a smile as he left also. "I guess Sparky's someone we should keep an eye out for," Faye muttered to me. "Did you see the way he and Vi were looking at each other? I think he's interested in our little girl."

I grinned and was starting to sign a reply, when the Lieutenants bade us goodbye.

"You should ask doc Roe if he has any spare supplies for you," Winters said. "That way you'll be able to work as medics in later battles."

I nodded. And Faye said, "of course. It's the least we can do to help out."

Nixon nodded to us before he left. "And keep your pretty noses out of trouble," he called back to us as he departed. "We don't need any of you getting hurt."

My face burned when he winked at me, and Faye nudged me in the side.

"I think Violet's not the only one with a little love interest here," she sang, and my face grew redder. Luckily, I was saved from having to reply by the appearance of Violet, who quickly spotted us and limped over.

"How are you feeling?" I signed after giving her a one armed hug.

"Much better," she sighed. "Still hurts, but I've definitely had worse."

Faye lightly punched her on the shoulder. "Yeah, but I think it's safe to say it was sort of worth it. After all, you did pretty much save our skins back there."

Violet waved the comment off, and we made our way back inside to see if there was anything we could do to help Doc Roe with the injured. I trailed slowly behind my friends since they would be the ones doing the talking, and as I followed, one particular soldier caught my eye. He had already been patched up, but I could tell he wasn't going to make it. Blood had already soaked through the bandage; the result of a large piece of shrapnel in his abdomen.

The wound was in such an unfortunate place that it had most likely punctured his stomach, and the devastatingly powerful acids that leaked from the intrusion were probably killing him slowly and very painfully. He was sitting against the wall in a sort of daze and barely even noticed when I walked over to him and crouched down. He was trembling and his face was pale from pain and blood loss, and it tore on my heartstrings to see a man in such a state.

I looked at his bloodstained ODs and made out the name 'Jackson.' Reaching out, I tentatively took his hand and held it gently in my own. He looked up at me slowly with glazed and unfocused eyes and whispered through cracked lips, "I don't want to die."

Seeing his face fully, I realized that he was young. Too young. He, I was sure, was one of the many men who had lied about their age when they enlisted, only to die before their time. My eyes brimmed with tears as I squeezed his hand reassuringly. He wasn't going to die alone. No matter how long it took, I was going to stay with him until he left this painful world behind.

As the minutes slowly passed, I was dimly aware of Faye calling my name. I paid her no heed, however, as the hand in mine had begun to grow cold, and the ragged breathing of my companion became less frequent. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up at Faye, surprised at the tear that escaped the confines of my eye, and found that my throat had constricted, making it harder to breathe. His death shouldn't have affected me the way it did, but I think the stress of being suddenly thrown into a war, and seeing a man who should have been at home with his family die so cruelly, had finally gotten to me. Watching enemies die as I guaranteed the safety of my beloved blood-sisters was one thing, but watching this innocent teenager die was a completely different enchilada.

Gently, Faye pulled me up and led me away from the boy who should not have died that way and sat me down in a chair in another room.

"Mallory," she said gently, but I did not acknowledge her. "Mallory," she said again, this time louder. I looked over at her with unfocused eyes, and signed slowly, "he was too young."

Faye sighed and pulled me into a hug. "I know, love. But he was already dying, and there was nothing you or anyone could have done. Now come on." She pulled me to my feet. "We've got work to do. There are more lives we can save."

I knew she sounded like she had just brushed off the death of the soldier, but I knew that she understood, and was trying to distract me, and for that, I was grateful. I gave her a weak smile and let her pull me into another room, where Doc Roe and Violet were respectively bandaging up another man's arm and head. I walked over to another wounded man with Faye, and as we worked over his injuries, I realized that I had to go on, no matter what. I would save as many lives as I could to make up for the flames I would later extinguish, but for the rest of my life, I knew that I would always remember the Jackson boy, and how I held his hand as the last breath of life escaped his lips.

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Wow. I just thought of this; sort of a spur-of-the-moment thing. It might be a little weird, as I really have no idea how to write scenes like this. Please review. I love to hear what you think of my stories, and how I can improve them. I also have a new poll up, so please check it out. Many thanks!

-Piratemuffins


	6. Medic!

**I do not own Shakespeare, or any other songs, poetry or other things in this story (unless I say so)! I am also aware that some of my characters take the roles of others in some scenes, and I mean no disrespect to the real people who originally did them.**

**XXX XXX XXX**

_I walked over to another wounded man with Faye, and as we worked over his injuries, I realized that I had to go on, no matter what. I would save as many lives as I could to make up for the flames I would later extinguish, but for the rest of my life, I knew that I would always remember the Jackson boy, and how I held his hand as the last breath of life escaped his lips._

**XXX XXX XXX**

All too soon, I was charged with another patient, and then another, and another. The line of wounded men continued for hours, until finally, there was only one left. I gently helped the man to his feet after I finished bandaging his leg which was ravaged by the deadly spray of a machine gun.

"Thank you ma'am," he had sighed gratefully after I had given him a syrette of morphine, which had instantly taken the screaming pain away.

I smiled at him. Since I suspected he didn't know sign, I said hoarsely, "It's no trouble at all, private…"

"Wilkes," he supplied. "Andrew Wilkes."

I patted his arm. "Well then, Private Wilkes, I don't want to see you acting as a kraut target anymore, you hear?"

He laughed and shook his head. "No ma'am. I'll be sure to stay bullet-free."

I smiled as one of his friends helped him outside to the truck which would take the wounded back to base and began to wash my hands of the crimson liquid that had so recently been the source of life of another man's body. When I was drying my hands, Faye walked in from the other room and tossed me an aid bag and medic's armband.

"Here you go," she said, adjusting her own armband. "We're officially medics now. You've got everything you could ever want for in a medical kit. An EMT book, tourniquets, iodine swabs, scissors, forceps, mercurochrome, bandages, sulfa, morphine syrettes, aspirin, hemostatic agents, etcetera, etcetera."

I grabbed the bag and looked inside excitedly. "Awesome!" I signed before riffling through it. "I've always wanted something like this!" Setting the bag down, I picked up the armband and fastened it around my left arm.

Just then, a familiar looking soldier appeared in the doorway. I recognized him as one of the men who was in the room when I woke up and was reunited with Faye and Violet.

"Uh, excuse me ladies, Lieutenant Winters told me to come get you. We're moving out in a few minutes, and you're supposed to be up with Doc Roe."

Faye smiled at him shyly, and I almost did a double take. Never in my entire life had I seen her act shy, and now, here she was, making googly eyes at the handsome young soldier.

"Thank you…" she trailed off, in lack of a name.

The soldier smiled back and offered his hand. "Joe, ma'am. Joseph Liebgott."

Faye and I shook his hand (knowing who he was instantly) and we made our way outside. "Liebgott, you said?" Faye asked, playing innocent. "Are you Jewish?"

A peculiar look suddenly crossed his face, as if he was slightly offended or annoyed. "Yes ma'am."

Faye smiled brightly. "How cool! I am too!" That definitely got his attention, and the two continued chatting as we made our way to meet up with the rest of the men. I spotted Violet, who was standing next to Doc Roe a couple yards away. Catching sight of us, she waved, and I trotted over to her.

"What's up?" I signed, looking over my shoulder at Faye, who was saying goodbye to the charming young soldier.

"Nothing much," she replied, making me turn my head back to look at her. "We're leaving, but nobody's told me exactly where to. If I'm correct in remembering, however, we're only a few days away from returning to Aldbourne."

Faye jogged up with a grin on her face and a light pink tinge painted across her cheeks, the sight of which left us gaping.

"Faye," Violet said incredulously, "Are you blushing?"

"No!" she shouted defensively, reddening farther before she hid her face behind her hair.

_Oh, yeah right. _I thought, smirking. _She so digs that Liebgott boy…_

I nudged Violet and pointed from Liebgott to Faye, and she grinned hugely.

"Aww," she cooed, taking on a German accent. "We're going to 'ave to remodel ze castle to make room for all ze bebies."

Faye blushed harder and slapped her arm before moving to stand by Doc Roe, the only one nearby who was unaware of the situation. Violet and I looked at each other and laughed at how uncomfortable she had looked. Only a few minutes later, we were given the order to start moving. On and on we went. Two hours later, we were marching through a field when it started to rain.

"Aw, crap," Violet grumbled. "My hair's gonna frizz!"

"Stop complaining," I signed back. "At least your hair is straight. Mine's gonna frizz and then _curl_."

Violet weighed my situation against hers for a moment, and then shrugged. "True," she admitted, brushing her waist length, _straight_ auburn hair behind her shoulder. My hair, pin straight only a few moments ago, just brushed my shoulders and was now starting to curl at the ends and my bangs. I sighed and fished a clip out of my pocket to pin my wavy bangs back.

"Hey Mallory," Faye called from behind me. "Do you-"

Suddenly, rapid gunfire rang through the air, and we dove for cover in a hedgerow amongst the shouts of the rest of the companies. Breathing heavily, I army-crawled for a while until I was under the cover of the bushes, and then I got up quickly and ran, stooped over so as to offer a smaller target to the enemy, following the other soldiers.

I got through the bushes and stumbled into a ditch, where I noticed a young soldier, Blithe, I remembered, face down on the wall of the ditch, his breathing rapid and shallow. Another soldier stood nearby, providing covering fire.

"Private," Violet said from behind me, having noticed that the poor boy was freaking out. "Private, you have to get up."

After a moment, he looked up at us with unfocused eyes.

"You have to get up," Violet repeated gently, grabbing his arm and hauling him to his feet. Staying low, we quickly made our way to a deeper part of the ditch, where more soldiers were huddled. We worked hard to dig multiple foxholes for all of us to fit, two or three to a foxhole. The light was fading fast, and it was still raining ceaselessly, not to mention, the Germans across the field were singing loudly, which only added misery to our already frayed nerves and pessimistic attitudes. I feared I would go mad, sitting in the mud in the middle of the night with naught but my closest friends to keep me warm. The three of us were huddled together, eyes wide open, untouched by the kiss of sleep, and likely to stay so for a long while.

I resorted to repeating soliloquies and excerpts from my favorite plays and stories in my head to keep myself occupied and distracted from the cold rain and occasional gunshots, but though it worked for the most part, the loud cracks still made me flinch. After the most recent round of shots, I closed my eyes, clasping my trembling hands together tightly, and began again.

_To die, to sleep, to sleep, perchance to dream _

_Aye, there's the rub_

_For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come_

_When we have shuffled off this mortal coil_

_Must give us pause_

_There's the respect that makes calamity of so long life_

_But that the dread of something after death_

"Medic!"

The shout surprised me, for no shots had been fired.

"Medic!"

I jumped up, signaling for Faye and Violet to stay in the foxhole, and scrambled out. I ran through the greenery until I came across the soldiers who were calling out. A young man who had been pointed out to me on our first day, Talbert, was sitting against a tree, clutching his abdomen. Joe Liebgott was kneeling next to him, while another young soldier whose name escaped me was standing in the foxhole with frightened eyes and his hands over his mouth.

I dropped to my knees next to Talbert and started to peel the layers of clothing away from his wounds.

"Can you breathe?" I demanded hoarsely.

"Yeah, I can breathe," he replied sharply, gasping in pain as my nimble fingers investigated his wounds. They weren't too deep, and if they didn't get infected, he would be perfectly fine. Only seconds later, Doc Roe appeared next to me and assisted me by pouring a sulfa packet on his wounds as I fished a roll of bandages out of my Aid kit. Applying pressure to stop the bleeding, I tightly wrapped his chest in the clean white linen, and only the slightest hints of crimson bled through.

"You're gonna be fine, Floyd," Roe assured the soldier as I tied off the bandage. His wounds weren't serious enough to require morphine, so I left him with a few painkillers once Roe assured me that he could take it from there. I nodded and trudged back to my foxhole, passing Lieutenant Speirs, who was traveling in the opposite direction, on the way. I nodded to him wearily and rubbed my cheek absently as I meandered through the trees. I cringed as Talbert's cries of pain echoed behind me.

A low voice from my right made me jump, nearly out of my skin. I had not realized that I wasn't alone.

"Is everything alright?"

I turned to see Lieutenant Nixon looking at me.

"O-oh," I stuttered nervously (Nixon had always been my favorite character), "Um, yes. A little trouble with a bayonet, but everything's under control. No permanent damage." I winced at how hoarse my voice still sounded and blushed, glad that in the darkness it was invisible.

Nixon nodded thoughtfully. "I see. Who was it?"

"Talbert, sir."

Nixon waved me off. "Please, no formalities. Call me Lew. Or Nix," he added as an afterthought.

I smiled shyly.

"Alright then. Lew."

He started to move towards me, and I almost stopped breathing, heart beating out of my chest. Slowly, ever so slowly, he brought a hand up to my face, and ran his thumb over my cheekbone. My skin burned along the trail where his thumb had traveled, and he slowly took his hand away.

"Sorry," he said embarrassedly. "You had blood on you."

I must have been redder than the reddest of cherries as he awkwardly stepped back and said, "Goodnight, miss Cutler," before disappearing into the trees.

I stood there a moment absently running my fingertips over the spot he had touched me. Never in my life had I ever been touched so gently by any man, and never in my life had I wanted the continuance of a man's touch so desperately.

_God help me, _I thought. _I'm in trouble._

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Oh, Ron Livingston… -sigh-**


	7. Panzers

**Here it is! Sorry for the wait, I lose track of time often, and then I'm like, "Really? I haven't updated in a week? Shiz!" It happens a lot…**

**Many thanks to PatryTrusky, S a i r a h i n i e l, and captain ty for reviewing my last chapter!!! You guys are awesome!**

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_I stood there a moment absently running my fingertips over the spot he had touched me. Never in my life had I ever been touched so gently by any man, and never in my life had I wanted the continuance of a man's touch so desperately. _

_**God help me,**__ I thought. __**I'm in trouble**__._

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**Violet's POV**

I must have fallen asleep before Mallory returned that night, because before I knew it, I was being ripped from the peace only sleep can give, and thrust back into the world of war as a mortar exploded a few foxholes over.

"Cheesus Cripes," I heard Faye shout as part of a tree fell next to us.

I grabbed my helmet and jammed it onto my head before rubbing the sleep from my eyes. It wasn't long before the shouts among us rang out and we were returning fire. I could hear Winters yelling in the distance, and only moments later, a private ran up to us and slid into our foxhole, holding on to his helmet.

"Lieutenant Winters says all of the medics are to spread out among the line in the event of casualties," he gasped. "Roe and Spina are by the left flank, so you ladies will take center and right." With that, he jumped out again and continued down the line.

"I'll take center," Faye offered. "You two can go right."

I fumbled with the strap of my aid kit as I yanked it over my head, and jumped out of the foxhole, almost faceplanting as my stiff muscles protested violently. Mallory and Faye climbed out behind me.

"Alright," I said to them, "Stay low, and don't go on any suicide runs, alright?"

Faye nodded to us and clapped a hand on our shoulders before running off towards the center of the line. I grabbed Mallory's hand and we ran together towards the right flank. Shots exploded around us as we pushed our tired legs faster. Soon, we were close enough to slide into the foxhole occupied by Blithe, who was clutching his head and yelling in terror. I rolled my eyes and kept my eye on the horizon, where the enemy fire was originating from. A large shape moved behind the trees.

_What the…?_

My eyes widened when I realized what it was.

_Oh sweet leprechauns dipped in fudge…_

A German tank rumbled out from behind the shrubbery, earning a yell from Lieutenant Welsh, who was farther down from us in the trench.

"Where the hell did they come from?"

I watched in horror as our artillery did nothing to stop the giant metallic beasts.

"Holy shit, there goes our left flank!"

My heart lurched as I thought of the men who were over to the left.

_Why isn't anything working? Why aren't they…oh!_

I jumped out of the foxhole, ignoring Mallory's protest. Keeping low, I stumbled down the line and jumped into the trench next to Welsh, who was scanning the area with binoculars.

"Sir," I shouted over the din. "Lieutenant Welsh!"

He looked at me with surprise.

"What are you-"

"Aim for the bottoms!" I shouted over him.

"What?" he yelled back, leaning closer to me.

"Aim for the bottoms," I repeated, louder. "The bottoms are the weakest areas of the Panzers' armor (Panzers are the German tanks)!"

"Are you serious?" he shouted back to me as another mortar exploded in front of us.

"As a heart attack," I yelled back, and jumped up to travel down the line. "Trust me!"

I darted through the trees, past the surprised faces of the men who weren't currently occupied with handling mortars, until I ran into Lieutenant Winters. Panting, I grabbed his arm before he could move on, and gasped out, "tell your men to aim for the bottom of the tanks. That's the weakest part of the armor, and you'll get rid of them a lot sooner. If you penetrate the armor, most times, they'll cook off."

He looked at me for a moment before turning to the nearest man and telling him to aim for the bottom of the tank that was in front of us. The first mortar fell too short, but the next one hit its mark, sending pieces of metal into the air as the Panzer came to a flaming halt. Not long after, a loud explosion alerted us that the Panzer did, in fact, cook off (meaning that the ammo inside the tank exploded due to heat). When the smoke cleared some, we could easily see the gaping hole and twisted metal of the tank.

Winters turned back to me with his mouth open slightly. "How did you…?"

I winked and patted his arm before pointing at my chest. "From the future, remember?"

I turned back around and ran back to the foxhole where Mallory was waiting for me with a look of realization on her face, and behind me, I could hear Winters shouting, "All mortars, aim for the bottom of the tanks!"

I grinned as I slid back into the hole. Mallory patted my cheek with a smile on her face and gave me the thumbs up. 'I can't believe I didn't think of that,' she signed with a wry smile on her face. 'Then again, I was always the one who fell asleep in history class.'

Moments later, Winters was at our foxhole, shouting over the noise of hundreds of guns for Blithe to get up. It took a few moments of yelling, but the young private eventually stood up on shaky legs and leaned heavily against the foxhole before he raised his rifle. He peered through the sight again and again, but it took another few moments for him to actually squeeze the trigger. Over and over again, he fired, as if in a daze, not really seeing his target. I looked over at Mallory, who had a look on her face that seemed to say, 'poor kid.'

As more mortars exploded around us, Mallory and I hugged each other, more than relieved that we had yet to hear the call for a medic. I peered over the edge of the foxhole again and gasped at the sight about 60 yards in front of me.

Lieutenant Welsh and another private were in the open, respectively loading and firing a rocket launcher (methinks). Just in front of them was a German tank, about to come over the hill. Welsh and the private froze as a round blasted the trees behind them. Dirt rained down on us seconds before the dreaded call rang out.

"Medic!"

Mallory jumped up before I could, and popped out of the foxhole, racing for the wounded man. My eyes, however, were glued to the men in front of me.

_Oh, shiz. Get a move on!_

"Aim for the bottom!" I screamed as the underside of the Panzer exposed itself. Suddenly, the rocket launched from the group and sped towards the tank. A small explosion blasted a hole in the tank, and it screeched to a halt moments before it too cooked off.

_Yes!_

Winters yelled for covering fire, and the men who had stopped to watch the explosion jumped into action once more. More shots rang out, soon followed by the unmistakable thud of bullets digging into flesh.

"Medic!"

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**Okay, here it is! Sorry again that it took so long. Please review!!!**

**-Piratemuffins**


	8. The Night Of The Bayonet

"_**Aim for the bottom!" I screamed as the underside of the Panzer exposed itself. Suddenly, the rocket launched from the group and sped towards the tank. A small explosion blasted a hole in the tank, and it screeched to a halt moments before it too cooked off.**_

_**Yes!**_

_Winters yelled for covering fire, and the men who had stopped to watch the explosion jumped into action once more. More shots rang out, soon followed by the unmistakable thud of bullets digging into flesh._

"_Medic!"_

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**Mallory's PoV**

After sitting in a foxhole for what seemed like days, Violet finally returned.

"Get up," she said to me. "We're going to Aldbourne."

I looked up at her, confused.

_Aldbourne?_

"They're pulling us off the line for a bit. We're going to England."

It was then that I realized that the buzzing in my ears was no longer the piercing sounds of gunfire, but rather the white noise of silence. Grabbing her offered hand, I pulled myself up, stretching my cold muscles. Brushing off my clothes, I looked around, surveying the scene. Men were still roaming around, searching for any remaining enemies. Violet tugged at my hand, leading me over to where Faye was standing next to Winters. Faye waved when she saw us, and Winters turned and greeted us also.

"You three are going to Aldbourne with the wounded, and the rest of the men will follow later today."

'But what about the men?' I signed. Violet hurriedly translated. 'What if someone gets hurt? If this is because we're women, I don't want to hear it!'

Winters looked absentmindedly over at the soldiers who were scouting the area. "Roe and Spina are staying, as well as the medics with the other companies. You three are going so you can take care of the wounded on the way to England. The fact that you are women has absolutely nothing to do with it, and I can hardly think that you would want to be separated."

My mouth formed an "Oh," shape, and I blushed and looked at the ground. 'Sorry.'

And that was how we started our journey to England.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Two days later, we found ourselves sitting in a mess hall in Aldbourne, England. We were warm, fed, and content. I hadn't heard a gunshot in a whole 52 hours. The three of us had a table to ourselves, at Winters' command, but we soon invited Roe and a few others who we knew wouldn't bother us to sit with us. The men were happy, laughing and joking around, but a deep sadness still lingered in the hearts of everyone.

Suddenly, the crowd of men was shushed, and one soldier, Gordon, stood up and leaned on his crutches.

"The night of the bayonet," he announced, grinning, as his three purple hearts gleamed in the light.

"The night was filled with dark and cold,

When Sergeant Talbert, the story's told,"

The men laughed and nudged Talbert, who blushed slightly.

"Pulled on his poncho and headed out,

To check the lines dressed like a Kraut."

Laughter rang out once more. I grinned, shaking my head, as Faye and Violet giggled. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Winters enter the room and head over to Nixon, who was standing in a corner.

"Upon a trooper our hero came,

Fast asleep, he called his name.

Smith! 0 Smith! Get up! It's time,

To take your turn out on the line.

But Private Smith, so very weary,

Cracked an eye, all red and bleary,"

I frowned at the serious looks on their faces and watched curiously as Buck Compton tapped Sergeant Lipton's shoulder.

"Grabbed his rifle, he did not tarry,

Hearing Floyd but seeing Jerry."

The men laughed once again, at Smith's expense. Smith, while laughing, embarrassedly ducked his head.

"IT'S ME! cried Tab, DON'T DO IT!, and yet,

Smith charged, toot sweet, with bayonet.

He lunged, he thrust, both high and low,

And skewered the boy from Kokomo.

And as they carried Floyd away,

Our punctured hero was heard to say,

when in this war you venture out,

Best never do it dressed as a Kraut!"

Shouts rang out amidst more laughter, and while I was laughing with them, I couldn't help but notice the frowns that were on the CO's faces. Something was up. I watched with growing anxiety as Lipton stood up and headed to the front of the hall. He announced that the training exercise for the afternoon was cancelled, but I knew that there was more.

"We're going back to France, so pack your gear. We will not be returning to England, boys."

A defeated silence hung over the soldiers as Lipton left them.

_Oh no. So soon..._

I sighed and dropped my head into my hands. Next to me, Faye put her head on the table, and Violet frowned at the grains in the wood of the table.

_We're jumping again._

My head shot up, and a look of horror crossed over my face.

_We're jumping! Oh no!_

I could tell that Faye and Violet had been struck by the same thought when they looked at me.

_What are we going to do? We've only been skydiving, but that's not the same!_

"Bollocks," Violet muttered. "This could pose to be a problem…"

"What are we going to do?" I signed.

Faye leaned her head in her hand, thinking it through. "Well, we do know how to skydive, no? I think we'll be okay. We just need to make sure we'll be on that jump. There's no way we're staying behind. We'll be Easy Company's first field nurses."

In our worry, we didn't notice Winters approaching, and failed to acknowledge him until he was right in front of us.

"I came to talk to you ladies about the jump," he said quietly, looking at each of us in turn.

"Please, sit down," Faye offered.

When he was settled, he folded his hands on the table, but before he could open his mouth, Violet spoke.

"We're going with you," she said with an air of finality.

Winters sighed.

"I had a feeling you were going to say that," he said wearily. "But you're not qualified to jump."

Faye propped her head on her hand, elbow on the table, as she smiled mysteriously.

"Yes we are."

Winters looked over at her in surprise.

"In our time," Violet supplied, "We're qualified skydivers. Sort of like the paratroopers without the fighting. We jump for fun, not for war."

Winters shook his head. "I should have known it was something like that. You truly are the most complicated and confusing women I've ever met."

Violet beamed.

"Why thank you!" She exclaimed. "We try."

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**Okay. I got writer's block at the very end, and decided to end it before I just spew out something worse. Many thanks to captain ty, AivieEnchanted, PatryTrusky, S a i r a h i n i e l, and Yayyou for reviewing the last chapter! Please review! Feel free to offer ideas, constructive criticism, or anything.**

**-Piratemuffins**


	9. Holland

"_In our time," Violet supplied, "We're qualified skydivers. Sort of like the paratroopers without the fighting. We jump for fun, not for war."_

_Winters shook his head. "I should have known it was something like that. You truly are the most complicated and confusing women I've ever met."_

_Violet beamed._

"_Why thank you!" She exclaimed. "We try."_

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Mallory**

Two days later, I was seriously almost regretting our decision to jump. For the past two days, we were obliged to trudge around with heavy packs on, and were even forced to practice jumping with said loads of misery. That is how we ended up in Aldbourne's small pub with aching shoulders and tired eyes. We were about ready to pass out, but decided it wouldn't do to let the men see us in such a state, lest they change their minds about allowing us to jump.

I was sitting at a table near some of the men who were playing a game of darts with Violet, whilst Faye was off somewhere with her little soldier boy, Liebgott. We both had a pint in our hands, and were watching with much entertainment the dart game. Buck and Luz were losing quite miserably, but I noticed that the lieutenant was throwing every dart with his left hand. A slow smile spread over my face as I realized what the sneaky monkeys were doing.

When the first gamble of the night was offered, I had to cover my mouth with my sleeve to hide my grin. Luz saw me out of the corner of his eye and winked at me, and it was all I could do not to laugh.

"So, the first person to hit the bulls-eye?"

"Yeah, one shot, one shot."

Buck looked at Luz with a face so innocent I almost believed it.

"One shot? Why not? Make it two. Two packs."

The price was quickly agreed on, and the smugness oozing off of their opponents made my grin even wider.

Buck had raised his hand to throw, and was sighting the target, when Luz suddenly spoke, radiating innocence.

"Lieutenant, uh, are you gonna shoot lefty all night?"

Buck lowered his arm and looked back at Luz as Joe Toye scowled and muttered, "Hey, come on!"

Somehow, Luz kept a straight face as he said, "Just curious, cause he's right handed."

Buck turned back to the board with a small smile.

"George." He raised his hand to throw again. "What would I do without George Luz?" He threw; Bulls-eye.

"Boop!"

"**Oooh!"**

"Goodness gracious!"

Buck held out his hand to Toye. "Two packs, gentlemen."

"Come on, I know you got 'em. Pay up."

By then, Violet and I were laughing so hard we had to cover our mouths and turn away.

"Hey y'all," a voice cried over the din of the pub. "Listen up. I've got some announcement to make." he reached back and pulled another man into our line of sight. "This here's Carwood Lipton."

From behind us, Malarkey called out, "He's already married, Smokey," causing us all to laugh.

"This here's Carwood Lipton, the new Easy Company first Sergeant."

The men cheered and clapped for him as Smokey continued. "As befitting his position, he says he has to make an announcement."

Lip stepped forward and cleared his throat, smile dropping off his face.

"Well," he said, and I could already feel my good mood slipping away.

_Uh-oh. Something's up..._

"I hate to break the mood here boys, but, uh, we're moving out again."

He turned and swiftly exited with a frown, as all of the men's smiles disappeared. Some looked at each other, while others just downed their pints, resigned.

My stomach dropped to my feet, and when I looked at Violet, I knew she was thinking the same thing.

_This is it. There's no going back._

Slowly, the men began to clear out of the pub to head back to their housing. Faye reluctantly parted with Joe and met back up with us as we made our way to the little cottage that we were quartered in. We didn't have to say anything; the silence spoke more than enough.

**XXX XXX XXX**

The next day, we found ourselves shuffling into the back of a large tent where our COs were going over our next operation: Market Garden. Violet and Faye looked at each other, knowing full-well that this particular operation was doomed from the start. Violet shook her head at Faye when she jerked her head up at the COs. She understood her meaning and looked away, biting her lip. She knew Violet was right, but she didn't like it any more than we did.

We couldn't possibly tell anyone that the operation wasn't going to be successful. We would alter the flow of history (more than we already had, of course). God only knows how it would turn out.

**XXX XXX XXX**

Milling around outside, Faye, Violet, and I were checking our gear before the jump. My heart fluttered awkwardly in my chest as I slid my M-1 out of its case. Doc Roe and Joe were with us, making sure we had all of our gear in place. Suddenly, a jeep horn sounded behind us, and we turned to investigate the noise. All of the men around us nudged each other and stared at the jeep, smiles fading from their faces. The man sitting in the passenger seat frowned out at the men, and I instantly knew who it was.

"Sobel," Joe muttered from behind me.

My lips quirked up into a smile when Violet whispered loudly, "Heigh-ho silver!"

Joe and Roe snorted.

"That makes him sound like a goddamn pirate," Faye grumbled. We all hated Sobel as much as the rest of the men, having watched Band of Brothers so many times. I covered my mouth to hide my smile, and turned back to Violet, who was grinning as well.

"Yarr," she growled, curling her finger into a hook and squinting her right eye, making me giggle.

A few minutes later, we saw Pirate Sobel giving Malarkey some trouble, and rolled our eyes. "That's him, alright."

We chuckled and turned back to our gear. My aid-kit was slung securely over my shoulder and Roe helped me with my M-1, securing it across my chest. With our packs on our backs, we all made our way over to the plane we were to be flying in. After being given a once-over by one of the senior officers, we were ushered into the plane. Once inside, I turned to offer my hand to Faye as she attempted to clamber up. After she was in, I chanced one last look out the door and caught sight of a familiar face turned in my direction.

Lieutenant Nixon's eyes met my own, causing me to blush. Offering me a smile, he gave a small salute and continued down the line of soldiers. Faye peered over my shoulder and smirked.

"Come on, honey. Stop ogling the nice lieutenant and sit down."

I stuck my tongue out at her but let her pull me away from the door. Over the next half hour, we were joined by three replacements we didn't know, Bull Randleman, James Miller, Frank Perconte, and Joe Toye. My stomach twisted into an insane knot when the plane started taxiing along the runway. Soon, we were in the air, and on our way to Holland.

**XXX XXX XXX**

We flew throughout the night. Faye had somehow managed to fall asleep on my shoulder (she must've had ear plugs or something), and Violet and I were just staring blankly at the opposite side of the plane. When the sun began to rise, it was announced that we closing in on our DZ. I nudged Faye awake, and helped her stand up.

We hooked our chute pulls to the line running along the roof of the plane and checked the gear of the person in front of us. From down the line, I heard, "Ten okay,""nine okay," "eight okay," and so on until Violet clapped my shoulder and shouted in my ear, "two okay."

I checked Bull's gear and patted his arm. "One okay," I yelled over the noise of the plane.

Bull moved forward to stand in the door, and looked at the lights next to him. When it turned green, he jumped, soon dropping out of sight. My heart thundered in my chest as I stepped up to the door. The light blared green, filling my vision, and before I could even think about what I was doing, I ordered my legs to propel me into the expanse of blue. The wind roared past my ears, drowning out all thought, and around me I could see the hundreds of other green parachutes floating slowly to the ground like deranged jellyfish.

The ground loomed ever closer, and I had to yank on the side of the chute to avoid landing on Bull. My feet lightly touched the ground, and I rolled onto my back to avoid breaking anything. Disengaging my chute, I crawled out from under the clinging green fabric, only to be landed on by Violet.

"Oof," I huffed as all of my air left me.

"Oops," Violet said in a faked tone of innocence. "_Sorry_ about that."

"Yeah right," I wheezed as she rolled off of me and stood up.

She threw off her chute and kicked it away before adjusting her gear and slinging her rifle over her shoulder.

"Come on," she said, offering a hand to pull me up. "Let's go shenaniganizing."


	10. Nuenen

"_Oops," Violet said in a faked tone of innocence. "Sorry about that."_

"_Yeah right," I wheezed as she rolled off of me and stood up._

_She threw off her chute and kicked it away before adjusting her gear and slinging her rifle over her shoulder. _

"_Come on," she said, offering a hand to pull me up. "Let's go shenaniganizing."_

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

_**Violet**_

Noon found us crouched in a ditch near a small farmhouse. Airplanes flew loudly overhead, causing me to duck instinctively. Not too long after, we were given the order to move out. Trudging across a wide field, we found ourselves approaching another town. My boots squelched through the mud as I ran up to the wooden fence ahead of me.

A window opened in the building ahead of us, and as the men trained their rifles on the figures in the window, a woman leaned out and tied an orange banner to the post.

_Oh, _I thought. _This must be Eindhoven._

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

The streets were crowded with ecstatic people, young and old, and orange flags and banners hung from every imaginable space. Everyone was singing and dancing, women were kissing men, and men shook hands and hugged the soldiers. With my helmet on, I must have been fairly undistinguishable from a man, and found myself soundly kissed by more than a few women as well. After the sixth time, I finally ripped off my helmet with a growl, allowing my hair to cascade down my back in all of its auburn glory as I roughly wiped the lipstick and saliva off of my cheek.

The people around me gaped at me in surprise as my true gender was revealed, but shrugged it off and moved to their next victims. We received the order to keep moving, and had to help pry more than a few of the men away from the bosoms of rejoicing women. We moved, slowly but surely through the town until we came across Winters and Nixon on a street corner.

I almost laughed out loud when I caught sight of our sweet Mallory glaring at the women who were planting kisses on Nix's cheeks. She huffed and stomped ahead, glaring at all in her path. Soon, we came across a group of men hauling a screaming woman to the center of the town, where other women were having their hair forcefully shorn off, and their dresses ripped. Mallory made to help her, but I grabbed onto her sleeve, understanding what was happening.

"Don't," I murmured to her. "That woman slept with the Nazis when they were occupying Eindhoven. If you interfere, you'll only make things worse for her."

She glared at me, and then bit her lip in defeat and allowed herself to be led away from the commotion. It hurt us to do nothing, but we knew we had to. As we made our way closer to the edge of town, the crowds parted to make way for tanks occupied by rejoicing villagers waving pennants. Suddenly, Luz appeared at Faye's shoulder and shouted to us over the growing clamor of the tanks that we were staying for the night. As my gaze fell upon the raucous crowd, I sighed.

_So much for getting a good night's sleep._

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

The next day, we were up bright and early, riding on tanks out of Eindhoven to Nuenen. I was almost asleep on my tank, when Mallory nudged me and pointed down the road. A little ways down stood a young woman with a shaved head and a small child in her arms. The baby must have been the accidental spawn of a Nazi she had bedded, and both the woman and the child were cast out of their home. Pity overwhelmed me, and I dug in my pack for a chocolate bar and some bread. Tossing it down to Alley, who was walking beside our tank, I told him to give it to the woman. Someone else also passed down a carton of cigarettes, and Alley handed the load to the poor mother.

She accepted them silently, but looked gratefully up at me with tearful eyes, and it almost broke my heart. She rested her cheek on her baby's head and in moments had passed from our sight.

Slowly, the tanks came to a halt, and the men on the ground slid into the ditches on the sides of the road. One of the lieutenants, in a fit of idiocy, strode out into the open and raised a pair of binoculars to his eyes.

_Fool! He's a sitting duck!_

Bull yelled out to him, "Lieutenant!" causing him to turn around in time to be shot in the neck by a sniper.

"MEDIC!"

Yelling, the men jumped off of the tanks and hurried into the ditches.

Bull ran to the Lieutenant's side, and yelled again.

"MEDIC UP FRONT! MEDIC UP FRONT!"

As one of the other medics ran to help, Bull shouted for everyone to keep moving. Suddenly, the medic went down, shot in the thigh. With a curse, I was up on my feet and running into the road. Sliding to a stop next to the lieutenant, I threw open my bag and tore out a pack of sulfa and bandages. Ripping open the sulfa, I poured it over the wound, relieved that the bullet hadn't severed an artery.

_He turned just in time, the lucky son of a bitch._

I ignored the man's strangled cry of pain as I pressed the bandages against his neck and tied them securely. After I jabbed a morphine syrette into his neck, I dragged him and the other medic into the ditch, where Faye took care of the other man's leg as I ran to help the other wounded.

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

Somehow, Faye, Mallory, and I found ourselves cornered behind a building with half of first and second platoon. When I peered around the corner, I almost got my head taken off by a kraut's lucky shot. Yanking my head back, I looked worriedly at everyone else.

"We can't get past the tank," I reported.

"Son of a bitch!" Johnny Martin growled.

Next to me, however, Mallory was busily working on an explosive contraption. She hooked a bunch of spare grenades onto two belts tied together and threaded a string through the pins, so that if the string was pulled, all of the grenades would detonate at the same time. I got the idea just as Toye muttered, "What are we gonna do?"

I handed my gun to Faye and grabbed the finished grenade belt from Mallory's hands. Peeking around the corner again, I saw the tank moving ever closer. Taking a deep breath, I leaned back against the wall and looked over at Faye, who would be my covering fire as I pulled the stupidest stunt I could possibly ever think of.

Throwing a carefree smirk onto my face, I muttered, "Little hand says it's time to rock and roll!" and darted out into the street as Mallory snorted, and Faye cocked the rifle. She dropped down onto one knee and started picking off krauts in my path as I hauled ass down the street.

_OH SHIT! OH SHIT! OH SHIT! OH SHIT!_

Bullets ricocheted around my feet and my heart pounded in my ears as I neared the tank. Behind me, I could hear the shouts of the men telling me to get back, but I paid them no heed. Soon enough, they gave up and offered their rifles as well.

I cursed as the road exploded by my left foot and one of the rock fragments flew up and cut open my cheek, leaving a trail of blood to streak down my face. By then, the krauts on the other side of the tank had spotted me as well, and were trying to blow my crazy arse to kingdom come.

Gritting my teeth, I threw my legs out in front of me in a mockery of a softball slide, and slid behind the side of the tank without krauts guarding it, yanking the pins out of the grenades and slinging the belt over the side of the tank as my momentum carried me swiftly past it.

Before I even came to a complete stop, I was on my feet and racing back to Easy. My timing was a bit off, however, and the grenades exploded before I was at a safe distance. The force of the explosion knocked me off of my feet as chunks of twisted metal flew around me, and a particularly heavy piece pinned me down.

Within moments, I heard shouts, footsteps, and gunshots as Easy made their way to the wreckage.

"Violet?' came Faye's frantic voice. "Violet, where are you?"

I groaned when I found that I couldn't move.

"Violet?" It was Mallory this time.

"Over here," I moaned, earning a sharp pain in my chest. Soon, capable hands lifted the piece of Panzer off of me and pulled me up. Another stab ripped through my chest, causing me to whimper. Martin, who was holding me up, gave me a disapproving look.

"Don't look at me in that tone of voice!" I wheezed painfully. "I'd like to see y'all do better. If you hadn't noticed, we were going to be massacred if somebody didn't do something!"

Martin pursed his lips and sighed. "You're right. Thank you. But you should still be more careful! We can't afford to lose one of our medics."

Faye grinned. "You mean some of your eye-candy," she muttered to Mallory, who snorted. Faye slung my arm over her shoulder, while Martin did the same, and together, we all made our way back to the rest of Easy, where we were being taken away in trucks.

They slung me onto a truck next to Buck, who was laying on his stomach on the floor.

"What happened to you?" I asked softly, pressing a hand to my side as another wave of pain shot through my ribs.

"Hit in the ass," Guarnere supplied with a grin. "One bullet, four holes."

I tried to laugh but stopped short when my ribs protested.

"Poor baby," I said with a smile. "Must be an easy company tradition, getting shot in the ass."

_**XXX XXX XXX**_


	11. Lady MacBeth

_They slung me onto a truck next to Buck, who was lying on his stomach on the floor._

"_What happened to you?" I asked softly, pressing a hand to my side as another wave of pain shot through my ribs._

"_Hit in the ass," Guarnere supplied with a grin. "One bullet, four holes."_

_I tried to laugh but stopped short when my ribs protested._

"_Poor baby," I said with a smile. "Must be an easy company tradition, getting shot in the ass."_

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

**Violet**

Many hours later, I found myself lying down on the side of a hill, breathing a little more deeply as my newly bandaged ribs began to hurt less and less. Night had fallen, and we were all still anxiously awaiting any news of the missing Sergeant Randleman. Mallory and Faye lay beside me, dozing, and nearby I could see the replacements talking amongst themselves. We had lost good men today, and there was no doubt in my mind that those young boys would never be the same again after seeing their comrades die.

A little ways away, I caught sight of Winters, Speirs, and Nixon poring over a map that was illuminated lightly by a small flashlight. As I idly studied the contours of Speirs' face, a small smile tugged at my lips as I remembered his reaction to my newest injuries.

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

_I gasped sharply as pain pierced my side for the hundredth time, this time caused by my evacuation of the truck I had formerly been seated in. Mallory was at my side in an instant, supporting me with a worried look on her face, but I waved her off. I was fine; it was nothing I couldn't handle._

_A few yards away, I saw Lieutenant Speirs jump off of the Sherman he had been riding on as well. Suddenly, he turned his head and caught my eyes with his own, causing my breath to catch in my throat as I fell into their intense depths. The slightest of blushes graced my pale cheeks as his dark eyes roamed over my body, coming to an abrupt halt at the arm that was wrapped around my ribs and the numerous cuts that I knew were on my face. I stared back at him defiantly, almost daring him to say something about it, only to watch as he shook his head with a resigned grimace and turned away._

_I let out the breath I didn't know I had been holding and smiled slightly. It looked like finally he figured out it was no good telling me not to get into trouble. My hungry eyes lingered on him as he walked away, admiring the way his shoulders filled out his shirt and the power that just seemed to radiate off of him. With another devious smile, I turned away and rejoined my ladies._

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

Before I knew it, I was asleep with the smile still gracing my lips. I knew not how long I was asleep. It could have been minutes, hours, days, or months and I would've still felt the same: tired, sore, and hungry. Peeling open one eyelid, I looked blearily at my friends, who were sitting up next to me and looking out at the men who were moving around below. With a yawn, I sat up and rubbed at my tired eyes with the backs of my hands.

"Man, what I wouldn't give for a Starbucks right now," I groaned as my heavy eyelids tried to close on me.

Faye, ever the morning glory, glared at me and said grumpily, "Yeah, well, do you see a freaking Starbucks anywhere around here?"

I moaned and covered my face with my arm, lying back down. Before I could even get comfortable, however, I was roused by shouts from the men below us. I lifted my arm to get a peek at whatever was happening and found myself looking down on a full jeep rumbling to a stop in front of us. I found myself smiling even before Johnny Martin's shout of "Bull!" reached my ears.

Mallory, Faye, and I watched with smiles on our faces as the men crowded around the sergeant, shaking his hand, clapping him on the shoulder, and welcoming him back. The reunion was cut short, however, as the order to move out fell upon our weary ears once more. With a groan, Mallory hauled herself up and helped Faye and I off the ground as well. As we made our way back to the Shermans we were to be riding on, we passed Bull and offered him greetings of our own.

"It's good to have you back, Sergeant," I said and patted him on the arm as Mallory and Faye shook his hand.

He smiled at us wearily and said, "Thank you, ladies. It's good to be back."

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

Not two days later, evening found the three of us hanging out with some of the men in a small town, the name of which had long escaped our wearied minds. Faye, Mallory and I were playing a game of bullshit with a worn deck of cards, looking up occasionally to talk with one of the guys, or just to watch Tab playing with a dog he had named Trigger.

"Two threes," Faye said, laying her cards onto the small pile in front of us.

"Two fours," I rebuttled, laying my cards down as well. With an inward smirk, I watched as Mallory unsuspectingly placed her one five on top of the cards.

_Suckerrrr!_

"Bullshit on me!" I crowed in triumph, picking up the cards and showing her that my two fours were in fact a Jack and a two. With a groan followed quickly by a glare at me, Mallory grumpily scooped up the cards. Before we could resume playing, however, the door slammed open. Everyone was on their feet in a flash as somebody yelled, "We got penetration! Alley's hurt!"

In an instant, Faye and I were hurrying over to the table where the men were laying the injured young soldier down on a table. Mallory could do nothing but hover behind us, seeing as how she had left her aid kit in our room.

_Oh, God, does it ever stop?_

I barely noticed as Winters asked the men who brought Alley in where they were, and what had happened. I was too busy trying to ignore the glistening scarlet lifeblood that stained my hands as I worked quickly to stop the bleeding and bandage the young man up.

Finally, the blood stopped seeping from his wounds, and I let my hands drop, staring blankly as a few of the men who weren't sent on patrol carried Alley out into the night. The sticky blood was slowly beginning to dry on my hands, and I let out a nearly inaudible whimper as I hurried over to a pail of water, wanting to wash my hands clean again as soon as possible. I scrubbed my hands long and hard until they were pink and almost raw. I would've scrubbed some more, if not for the evil little thought that skittered across the back of my mind.

_Just like Lady Macbeth. Always washing, never able to rid her hands of the stain of blood._

The thought made me shudder and draw my hands out of the bucket. Sitting back on my heels, I covered my eyes with my arm and let out a deep breath. From behind me, I heard the soft whisper of Mallory's recovering voice.

"It doesn't seem as if we'll ever get used to it, does it?"

Turning red-rimmed eyes to face her, I whispered back, "no Lore. It doesn't look like it."

Wordlessly, she came over to me and wrapped my up in a soft embrace.

"Look at me," I muttered angrily into her shoulder. "I'm crazy enough to almost get my stupid arse blown up time and time again, but at the sight of blood on my hands, I have an almost mental breakdown."

Mallory squeezed me tightly before letting me go and holding me at arms length to look me in the eyes.

"There's nothing wrong with that, Vi," she consoled me softly. "You are brave enough to do things that I couldn't even dream of doing. You've saved our lives. More than once, no less. Nobody who knows you would even begin to even think that there is something wrong with you not wanting to see blood spilt. What matters is that you keep going, no matter what. You're strong Vi. I know it, the men know it, and you should too. So leave the fretting to us, and go pull your crazy life-saving stunts and we'll be okay."

I looked down at my shoes and muttered, "I guess I can do that."

Looking back up into her gentle sea-green eyes, I let go of the anger and frustration that I had gathered against myself and sighed. "You're right, Lore. Thank you."

She patted my cheek and pulled me gently over to the door. "Of course I'm right. Come on. Let's get some sleep for once. We're going to get some target practice in tomorrow. It's about time Faye learned how to actually hit something.

We laughed loudly at the outraged "HEY!" that came from our friend, and as we walked through the balmy night, arms linked, I thought once more how lucky I was to have these two girls by my side. Without them, I most certainly would have been broken a long time ago.


	12. Dreaming

_Howdy y'all. I'm soooooooooooo sorry I haven't updated in a really long time, but I've just been in a little bit of a pit and haven't been in a writing mood. I apologize sincerely, and I'll try to get back on track, but regrettably, I can make no promises. Many thanks to my beloved readers and my lovely reviewers; thank you for staying with me! Hugs to all of you._

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* * *

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_**We laughed loudly at the outraged "HEY!" that came from our friend, and as we walked through the balmy night, arms linked, I thought once more how lucky I was to have these two girls by my side. Without them, I most certainly would have been broken a long time ago.**_

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

**Faye's PoV**

_I ambled slowly through the woods that surrounded me, briefly pressing my hand to the rough bark of the trees, and running my fingertips along smooth vines and leaves. The place seemed so familiar to me. In my head, I knew that I had never been there before, but my heart said otherwise. I knew these woods. The foliage above me thinned, resulting in a light that grew steadily brighter, and another minute later I found myself striding into freshly cut grass. The sweet smell drifted up on the warm summer air, tangling its delicate fingers around me as I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, a small smile tugging at the corners of my lips. _

_The peacefulness I was enveloped in, however, was broken by the shouts of a little girl, issuing from not too far from where I stood. I lazily opened my eyes to see a pair of kids not 20 feet away from me. How I didn't notice them before, I have no idea. The little girl was straining, raised up on the very tips of her toes and jumping as high as she could with her arm outstretched, trying to grab the stuffed animal that was dangled tauntingly above her head by the older boy she was with. I narrowed my eyes at the little boy and called out to him, "hey! Give the girl her toy back!"_

_I was met, however, with an astounding lack of response, so I repeated myself, louder this time. Neither of the children so much as twitched. Angrily, I strode up to them and propped my fists on my hips._

"_Hey! Look at me when I'm talking to you!"_

_The little girl slipped in the midst of another jump, falling to the ground with tears in her eyes. It was then that I got a good look at her, and gasped in shock. Misty violet eyes gazed up at me from behind dark brown hair with a lone shock of silvery white. She was the little girl from the picture I had been found with when I was a child. It was only when the boy behind me called out, "What's so great about this stupid raccoon anyways?" that I realized that the little girl was not staring at me, but rather __**through**__ me. Neither of these children could see, feel, nor hear me. _

_The girl got to her feet and cried, "Wally is __**not**__ stupid!" _

_Another shock went through me. __**Wally? **_

_Snatching up the tattered stuffed raccoon, the girl cried through her tears, "__You're__ such a jerk, Lewis! Why do you have to be so mean?!"_

_I was left, dumbstruck, as she ran off with her toy. The boy passed me with his hands shoved deep in his pockets and a frown etched on his young face. Messy dark brown hair fell into his chocolate brown eyes. I started. I knew those eyes._

_Before my frazzled mind could dig around and remember where I knew those eyes from, I suddenly found myself in another area, and the sun was slowly sinking beyond the horizon. The sound of sobs cut through the silence that I had been left in not seconds before, and I looked up into the tree beside me, startled, to see the little girl from earlier huddled in a ball in an indent between a tree branch and the weathered tree trunk._

"_Hey!" I called in surprise, momentarily forgetting that I couldn't be heard. "Are you okay? How did you get up there?"_

_When I was answered only by her uninterrupted tears, I sighed, kicking the tree. "Of course she can't hear me," I muttered, trying to ignore the sudden throbbing of my big toe._

_Before I could further injure my foot by kicking something else, I heard a worried voice call from behind me. "Faye?"_

_I whirled around, only to see the boy from earlier looking around frantically. I almost replied, before remembering once more that he couldn't hear or see me. _

_**But how did he know I was here?**_

"_Up here," came a wavering voice from above me, causing my eyes to return to the girl in the tree._

"_Faye!" the boy exclaimed in relief. "What are you doing up there?! You almost gave me a heart attack!"_

_I frowned as my mind whirred furiously. **So her name is Faye too? That's really weird... She's gotta be the first Faye I've met, other than myself, of course. And the hair! I thought **I** was the only one who had...white...hair?**_

_My eyes shot back up to the little girl, whose violet eyes were filled with tears as she looked down at her the older boy._

"_Faye Marie Nixon,__ how many times have we told you not to climb up trees if you can't get down?!__" the boy cried in a gentle reprimand as he reached up toward her. "__Come on; Jump down. I'll catch you.__"_

_Little Faye wiped her eyes and sniffled before slowly uncurling from her huddle and sliding cautiously toward the boy. Scooting around, she clung to the branch for dear life as she swung down. The boy, __**Lewis, **__I remembered, grabbed her and held on as she slowly released her grip on the branch. Lewis slowly set her feet on the ground, where she stood on her own and wiped her eyes once more, sniffling._

_Lewis kneeled down in front of little Faye and procured the stuffed raccoon from earlier, onto which the little girl promptly latched on and squeezed. __She then threw her tiny arms around her brother's neck and hugged him tight (still holding onto the raccoon)._

"_I love you Lewis," she mumbled into his neck._

_The boy slowly hugged her back. "__I love you too, Faye. And I'm sorry for taking Wally away. I know you love him,__ even if he is a stupid raccoon.__"_

_Little Faye pulled back and stomped her foot, crying, "Wally is _not _stupid!__"__ But this time, she had a smile on her face._

_Lewis laughed and ruffled her hair. "C'mon, little bear. Let's go home."_

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

By the time I was completely awake and comprehensive, the astoundingly vivid dream was slipping away from me, no matter how desperately I attempted to cling onto it. It was, I thought wryly with a disappointed grimace, _like trying to hold water in cupped hands. No matter how tightly you press your fingers together, it always leaks through._

With a sigh, I rolled out of the bed I shared with Mallory (Vi slept on the little couch in our room that night) and stumbled over to the basin of water that was positioned on a dresser by the lone, shuttered window. Scooping up some of the water, I splashed it onto my face and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Blowing water droplets off of my nose, I blindly reached for the towel nearby and proceeded to gently wipe the moisture away.

Upon opening my eyes, I was immediately greeted with the sight of myself, bed-head and all, staring back at me from the small mirror propped against the wall. As soon as my eyes fell upon the strange white streak that had fallen loose from its usual hiding place (oh-so-secretly tucked behind my ear and other hair), I was presented with a vivid flash of my earlier dream.

~_ The little girl slipped in the midst of another jump, falling to the ground with tears in her eyes. It was then that I got a good look at her, and gasped in shock. Misty violet eyes gazed up at me from behind dark brown hair with a lone shock of silvery white. ~_

With a gasp, I stumbled back from the mirror, shaking my head and choosing to ignore the strange happening as the memory once more faded into oblivion. Trembling slightly, I made my way over to my pile of clothes that I had thrown haphazardly over a chair the night before and grabbed my pants. Distractedly, I pushed one leg through its respective hole, but my lack of concentration would be my demise once more. Foot tangled in the other pant-leg, I tumbled to the floor with a very unattractive squawk; a mess of flailing limbs and mahogany curls.

Before I could even get up, a pillow flew at me from the bed –punishment for waking her up- and successfully hit me square in the face as Mallory rolled over grumpily, one pale foot hanging off the edge of the bed. Defeated, I lay back onto the floor with a loud thump, one leg still hanging out of my trousers.

"Why does life have to suck?" I groaned angstily as Mallory flipped me the bird from her position on the bed (I was making too much noise again, and she had no pillow to throw). "I love you too, cupcake," I grumbled as I stood up to attempt getting dressed once more.

Five minutes later –dressed with no further accidents- I finished lacing up my boots and stood up to stretch my tired limbs. Toes curling in pleasure as my muscles loosened, I cracked my knuckles, popping them one by one.

"Come on, sleepyheads," I called to Mallory and Violet past a yawn. "We've got things to do today."

I was answered only by groans and grumbles as my friends attempted to grasp at their fleeing sleep.

"Faye, I hate you," came the muffled moan from the couch, where Violet's face was smooshed into her pillow.

"I love you too. Get up."

Making my way to the door, I casually called over my shoulder to the two girls who were still laying face-down on their respective sleeping areas, "by the way, there's coffee in the mess."

As I shut the door, I heard two loud thuds issuing from the room I had just vacated. Smirk in place, I made my way into the early morning sunlight, shaking my head at the predictability of my friends.

_**XXX XXX XXX**_

_Well, that's all for now, folks. Sorry it's a little short, but I had to get -something- posted. Please, please, please review, and feel free to send me your ideas and such. I welcome all suggestions! _

_-Cuppycake (a.k.a Piratemuffins)_


	13. Coffee And A Kiss

**Words cannot describe how sorry I am that it's taken me so long to update. I do have a fairly plausible excuse, however. My computer crashed a little while ago, and I lost _everything. _And when I say everything, I mean everything. I've been taking a bit of time just to try and replace everything, but it's been slow going. I hope y'all aren't too mad at me. Anyways, I believe this is the longest chapter I've ever posted (even if it is still a bit short). A big thank you to all who have stayed with me this long, and I already have the next few chapters planned out, so it shouldn't take me too long to pop the little buggers out. Many thanks to those who reviewed my last chapter. There were two of you, I believe. Thanks a bunch.**

**XXX XXX XXX**

_Making my way to the door, I casually called over my shoulder to the two girls who were still laying face-down on their respective sleeping areas, "by the way, there's coffee in the mess."_

_As I shut the door, I heard two loud thuds issuing from the room I had just vacated. Smirk firmly in place, I made my way into the early morning sunlight, shaking my head at the predictability of my friends._

**XXX XXX XXX**

Blinking in the brightness of the early morning sunlight, I yawned once more as I made my way slowly along the dirt road that ran under my boots. Waving to soldiers as I passed, I headed toward the building used as the mess, lacing my fingers behind my head as I went. It wasn't until I was almost to the mess that I noticed Joe Liebgott walking out of CP, gun slung over his shoulder and blood leaking from a wound in his neck. Alarmed, I changed my course and hurried over to him.

"Hey, Liebgott," I called out in greeting, causing him to turn towards me. Waving slightly as I jogged up, I puffed, "What happened? Are you okay?"

The young soldier scratched his cheek awkwardly as he replied, "Huh? Oh, yeah, we took out two SS companies earlier this morning and Winters asked me to bring the prisoners back." The look in his eyes told me that he was displeased about the idea of leaving the Germans alive, so I patted his arm and changed the subject.

"Hey, let's take a look at your neck. I can't have one of the Army's finest passing out on me from blood loss, now can I?" Tossing a wink in at the end, I watched gleefully as he blushed slightly under the dirt and blood.

"W-well," he mumbled, looking at anything that wasn't me, "you don't need to do that. I was already going to the aid station anyways…"

I flapped a hand at him, cutting his comment short. "Oh, pish. I'm closer than the aid station, and you don't have to worry about me being rough. I'll be nice, I promise."

Before the poor boy had a chance to protest, I grabbed his hand and pulled him back the way I came. Once we reached our lodgings, I turned around, and it was only then that I realized I was still holding his hand. Heat crept up my neck as I dropped the appendage like a hot potato and stuttered, "Um, my med-kit is inside, so…uh, I'm just gonna…yeah…Don't move!"

In my haste to escape, I failed to see the stupid smile that spread across Joe's face. Leaping up the stairs two at a time, I bounded into the room I had vacated not ten minutes earlier and scooped up my medic bag. Violet and Mallory were nowhere to be found, so I assumed they were already in the mess. Pausing in front of the mirror, I patted my hair down and straightened my fatigues before I realized what I was doing. Growling in frustration, I slapped my forehead. _What am I even _doing? I questioned myself miserably. _Why am I trying to impress him? He's just a boy for chrissakes! _

As I hurried out of the room again, however, the little annoying voice in the back of my mind spoke up. You know the one that always spouts random contradictions that always seem to be true, but you refuse to accept them? Yeah; that one.

_He's a very _cute_ boy, Faye, darling. A very cute boy who you just so happen to be interested in. And you know what? I think he might like you toooo!_

Before I even realized I was speaking out loud, I hissed, "Shut up!"

"What?"

_Oh, crap! I said that out loud, didn't I? _

Joe was leaning against the doorframe, looking up at me as I froze on the last stair like a deer caught in headlights. _Okay, be calm. Play it cool…_

"Uh…what? I didn't say anything."

I cringed mentally at how lame I sounded. _Smooth move, Elvis!_ _I said _cool_! Was that _cool?_ I don't think so!_

The soldier raised an eyebrow but didn't push the matter, for which I was _extremely _grateful. I could still feel the embarrassment burning the tips of my ears.

"Um, let's take a look at your neck now!" I blurted, grateful for a subject change. Pointing to the steps in front of me, I ordered him to sit. Resting his M-1 against the wall, Joe pulled off his helmet and held it in his lap as I gently pulled the neck of his ODs away from his injury.

"It doesn't look too bad," I murmured, half to myself, as I inspected it. Picking up my canteen, I unscrewed the top and warned, "This is going to hurt a little," before pouring a small stream of water onto the wound to clean it out. If it pained him, he didn't show it. Setting the canteen down, I riffled through my bag until I came across the resealed, half empty packet of sulfa I had used on another small injury. After pouring the powder onto the wound, I pressed a bandage to it and tied it securely, trying to make my ministrations as gentle as possible. After wiping my hands on my trousers, I patted his shoulder and said, "Okay, GI-Joe, you're all set."

"What?"

"Um…nevermind!"

Chuckling slightly, my charge stood up and set his helmet back over his dark hair before grabbing his gun.

"Thanks a lot Miss Eifler. I really do appreciate it."

I smiled at him. "It was no trouble at all, soldier. If you would, though, please call me Faye. There's no need for formalities, I'm just a medic."

The soldier smiled back. "You are most certainly not 'just a medic,' Miss- Faye," he replied, catching himself with a wink. My face heated up once more. "You and your friends are all one of us. All the guys say so. And if I get to call you Faye, then you have to call me Joe."

Hearing that from him made my heart jump in my chest. It was the greatest honor I could think of, being accepted as a part of Easy Company. Even though we hadn't done much, I guess it was still enough for them to see that we were serious about being a part of it all. Despite my efforts to not look like a moron in front of the handsome and charming soldier, I couldn't keep the big grin off of my face.

"Thank you, Joe," I said softly. "That means a lot."

With another smile, he touched the rim of his helmet and turned on his heel. Before I could stop myself, his name spilled from my lips once more, stopping him in his tracks.

"Yeah?"

His dark eyes stared into mine.

_Shit! I didn't even think! What do I say? Shit, shit, shit!_

"Um…" my face probably resembled a tomato. "Do you maybe wanna, um, grab some coffee with me? I was about to head to the mess when I saw you earlier, and I would really enjoy some company?"

_Why did that come out like a question? Christ, did I really just say that? Stupid, stupid, stupid! Great job, Faye. He probably thinks you're a complete and utter, desperate, moron!_

"Sure."

…_Say what?_

"I'd love to grab some coffee with you. I think I should probably clean up a little first though, if you don't mind." He looked a little sheepish at the thought, but I couldn't have been happier.

"Oh, of course not! I need to clean up as well. How about I meet you there in ten? Is that okay?"

Joe offered me a crooked grin that made my heart flutter.

_Down, girl!_

"Sounds great. See you in ten, then."

I grinned stupidly as he retreated toward the makeshift barracks. Gathering up my bag, I turned back towards the door, only to come face to face with a grinning Violet and Mallory.

_Uh-oh…_

"Uh…hi?" I said lamely.

Violet stopped me when I tried to squeeze past her and smirked.

"So," she teased. "It looks like someone has a date today."

I felt my blush give me away as I stammered, "I-it's not a _date!_ We're just…"

Mallory smirked. "You're just?" When I couldn't give her an answer, she raised an eyebrow and continued, "That's what I thought. Come on," she ushered me upstairs. "Let's get you prettied up for your little date."

"It's not a date!"

She rolled her eyes and forced me into a chair, where she proceeded to tug at my hair mercilessly. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Ten minutes -and much hair pulling- later, my older friend pushed me over to the mirror.

"What do you think?" she asked as I stared at my new hairstyle in the mirror. She had braided all of my hair into a single braid and then pinned it around my head like a sort of crown, effectively keeping it out of my face. "It looks nice, but it doesn't look too fancy, which I figured you might want so it doesn't look like you're trying too hard to impress him. Did I do good?"

I smiled broadly at her and pulled her into a hug. "It's perfect," I assured her. "Thank you."

She blushed in embarrassment and shooed me away. "Go on, now. Go meet your soldier boy."

As I bounded down the stairs, I heard her call after me, "Have fun!"

Rolling my eyes, I trotted down the dirt road to the mess, where I was pleased to see Joe waiting for me. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and when he spotted me a smile crossed his lips, causing my own lips to mirror his subconsciously. As I neared him, I noticed that his hair was slightly damp, as if he had dumped water over his head to wash his hair and face. There wasn't much he was able to do about his ODs, but I couldn't have minded less. It was a war; I understood.

"Hey Joe," I greeted him. "Thanks for waiting."

He grinned and held the door open for me. "Don't mention it. Besides, it's not every day I'm asked to get coffee by a pretty lady," he joked. As is there was ever time. Nevertheless, I blushed.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Mr. Liebgott," I teased with a smile as I walked into the mess. The soldier chuckled and followed me inside, leading the way to one of the boys that was assigned kitchen duty. A few minutes later, coffee in hand, we mosied over to an empty table, where we sat across from each other.

"So," I finally said after a few moments of silence, "Where do you hail from?" Though I already knew the answer (which I wasn't supposed to know anyways), it made for conversation. He cracked a small smile and took a drink of his (sludge) coffee before replying.

"San Francisco. Where are you from again?"

My eyes betrayed my amusement as I replied, "Very far away, but I lived in Texas pretty much my whole life. Fort Worth, actually."

My companion chuckled before resting his elbows on the table and lacing his fingers together, gazing at me from over them. "So what exactly did you _do_ before you showed up here?" Almost everyone in Easy (and one in particular in Dog) knew of our situation, so I assumed he meant future-wise.

"Well," I began, tracing the lip of my cup with my index finger. "Mallory, Violet and I lived together in Richmond, where I went to college. Violet already lived there, and Mallory went with me when I left for school." I decided to leave out the particular details of exactly _why_ she escaped with me. "Violet and I met in a dance class, and pretty soon, the three of us were like sisters. We bought an apartment and lived there for almost a whole year before we ended up here. I guess I spent most of my time at school, in dance class, or with my girls. Nothing very exciting, really." Not wanting to bore him with my life story, I changed the subject. "What about you?"

He cleared his throat before replying. "Me? Well, it was nothing big; lived in Frisco my whole life. I went back and forth between being a cabby and working in a little barber shop." He switched the subject back to me, much to my chagrin. "So, what did you study in college?"

Our chatter went back and forth, even when our coffee was long gone. When it finally drew to an end, I realized with a smile that it was the longest I had ever talked continually with a guy who wasn't related to me, an elder gent, or gay. I kind of liked it.

"I guess I should get going," Joe said, though he made no move to get up. "I need to check back in with Winters at CP."

Slightly disappointed, even though we had been talking for the past three hours, I agreed. "Yeah, there's probably something I could be doing at the aid station too." Standing up, I grabbed my empty cup when he did the same. Smiling softly at him, I said shyly, "Thank you for keeping me company, Joe. I had a great time."

The young soldier offered me another crooked grin before replying that he would gladly do it again. We moved toward the doors in comfortable silence after depositing our cups in the bin of dirty dishes. Entering once more into the bright sunlight, we stood for a while, neither knowing exactly what to say. Before I could change my mind, I mustered all of the courage I possessed and stood on my tiptoes to give him a light peck on the cheek.

"See you later, Joe," I mumbled, blushing furiously, before trotting off in the direction of the aid station. If I had glanced over my shoulder during my retreat, I would have seen the handsome soldier watching me as I hurried away for a moment longer with a stupid grin on his face before he finally turned and headed towards CP.

I reached the aid station just as Mallory and Violet were leaving. Before I could even open my mouth, Violet grabbed my arm and dragged me through the town to a grassy hill just behind our lodging house. Pushing me onto the ground, she plopped down in front of me and said, "Spill!"

My returning blush must have given me away. Hiding my face in my hands, I shook my head in embarrassment as Mallory laughed gleefully.

"What happened?" She inquired excitedly. "Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

Eventually, they got the whole story from me, causing me to throw myself down onto the ground, hiding my face once more when Violet busted out laughing.

"You ran _away?"_ she gasped through peals of laughter. "You actually ran away!"

"Shut up!" I moaned. "I was embarrassed; I didn't know what to do!"

Even Mallory was giggling then and Violet only laughed harder. When she had finally calmed down enough to speak without chuckling, she pulled my hands away from my face and looked me in the eyes.

"Honey, that boy is _interested_. _Trust_ me," she said sincerely. "You should've just grabbed him and kissed him senseless, and I bet he wouldn't have minded a _bit_! Hell, he probably would've thrown you over his shoulder and carried you away to have his way with you!"

The blush returned, full force. "Any guy would," I grumbled half heartedly. "They haven't been with a woman in ages."

Mallory took my hand and squeezed it. "Oh, sweetie, that is most definitely _not_ the case with that boy. When guys are looking for some action, it shows. They practically rape you with their eyes before you even get halfway through a conversation. That boy didn't look away from your face, not _once_, when you were talking to him earlier. You've got him wrapped around your finger, hun."

Looking up at her, I whispered shyly, "You really think so?"

Both she and Violet nodded. "Honey, that boy is genuinely interested in you. You should give it a shot."

I beamed stupidly, earning another round of chuckles from my blood sisters. This time though, I couldn't have cared less. After a few more minutes of lazing, I sat up with a groan and began brushing grass off of my jacket.

"I gotta get back to the aid station," I sighed. "I was supposed to finish inventory today."

Violet grabbed my arm and forced me back down. "Not so fast, chica. Mallory and I finished for you while you were on your little date. We have the rest of the day off."

Biting my lip, I threw my arms around them and cried, "I love you guys so much! I don't know what I ever did to deserve friends like you."

Malory and Violet only chuckled, returning the gesture.

"You saved my life and my future," Mallory whispered, sniffing slightly. "I owe you everything."

Violet smiled at me when she pulled away. "And you saved me from starvation," she joked. "Without your cooking, I never would have survived."

I mock glared at her, crossing my arms. "So you've just been using me for my cooking?" I demanded in mock outrage.

"Yeah, pretty much," she replied lazily, laying back and lacing her fingers behind her auburn head.

With a haughty sniff, I stuck my nose in the air and turned away from her. "Fine," I sniffed. "I see how it is. See if I ever cook for you again."

With a cry, Violet shot up and kneeled in front of me, clutching my knees as she played along. "No! Anything but that!" she sobbed. "How can you be so cruel? I'll do anything you ask; please don't deprive me of your culinary genius!"

Mallory and I snorted with laughter when Violet pretended to kiss my feet. Shaking her off, I cackled, "Yes! It's back to the mess hall with you!"

Violet clutched her chest and reached out to me. "Nooooooooooooooo!" she wailed, but the effect was ruined by her trembling voice. Finally we collapsed in a fit of giggles. For a moment, we forgot where we were and why we were there. It was as if the war didn't exist. Even though we were happy in the moment, we knew that it couldn't last. October was drawing to a close and winter was fast approaching. Time was ticking for Easy Company, and the three of us knew where we were heading, and what it would bring.

Bastogne.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**And there you have it. A little bit of development in the Faye/Liebgott relationship. I live for reviews, my lovelies. Let me know what you think!**

**-Cuppycake**


	14. Pokerface

**Two chapters in 24 hours! Think of it as an apology present for my lack of updates. It's Mallory's turn to get a little action. Enjoy.**

**XXX XXX XXX**

_Violet clutched her chest and reached out to me. "Nooooooooooooooo!" she wailed, but the effect was ruined by her trembling voice. Finally we collapsed in a fit of giggles. For a moment, we forgot where we were and why we were there. It was as if the war didn't exist. Even though we were happy in the moment, we knew that it couldn't last. October was drawing to a close and winter was fast approaching. Time was ticking for Easy Company, and the three of us knew where we were heading, and what it would bring. _

_Bastogne._

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Mallory**

I sat, slightly hunched, over the jacket of Violet's ODs, needle pinched tightly between my tired fingers as I finished off the second to last tear that I was mending. The she-devil herself was sitting at a rickety table, along with Faye, outplaying a couple of the boys at poker. The pot was, at the moment, sixty seven dollars, two packs of lucky strikes, and a chocolate bar. I ducked my head to hide my grin was Violet frowned at her cards, flicking her eyes back and forth between them and the others. To the untrained eye, she looked distressed over her hand, but I knew her too well. That was simply her poker face. She took great enjoyment in letting the boys think they had her before revealing her (usually) winning hand. Tonight was no different.

The needle bit into the cloth once more, but I barely paid attention to my sewing (it was a mindless task anyways. Instead, I paid attention to the conversation at the poker table.

"Well boys -and girls-," that was Luz. "It looks like you all are in trouble." He laid down his cards, earning groans from around the table. "Full house." He reached over to scoop the pot into his arms, but Faye grabbed his arm, smirking.

"I don't think so, Mr. Luz," she taunted playfully. "Violet hasn't laid down her cards yet."

The man glanced over at Violet, who was smiling slightly to herself. "You got something to show us, sweetheart?" he asked suspiciously.

Violet only smiled sweetly at him. "Actually…" Drawing out the word, she spread her cards out in front of her. "Royal flush, boyo." Luz's head hit the table. "I win again."

I laughed loudly, causing a few heads to turn towards me (Violet's included). My friend only flashed me a cheeky grin as Malarkey scowled. "You knew she had a flush, didn't you?" he accused me. I only grinned and shook my head, dropping my eyes back to my sewing long enough to tie it off and bite the thread. After stowing the needle and thread back in my little sewing kit, I stood up, gathering the clothes I had acquired throughout the night. Slipping the kit into one of my many pockets, I tossed Violet's jacket at her head, grinning when she squawked. The other jackets I tossed at Tab and Johnny Martin, nodding in acknowledgement when the offered their thanks. Slipping my hands in my pockets, I kissed each of my girls on the cheek, announcing that I was going back to our room. I then slipped out the door and into the crisp autumn night.

Taking a moment for myself, I stood still under the clear, starry sky and breathed in deeply. The air tasted of autumn: crisp and spicy. Letting out a soft sigh, I started my walk back to our little house across the tiny little town. I walked slowly in an attempt to savor the peaceful night. I knew what lay in wake, just a few months ahead of us, and I knew that this was one of the few calm nights we would see for a while. It was a little disconcerting, knowing who would die and who would live, who would be injured, who would escape with the barest of wounds. I wanted to warn them, but I knew better than to talk to anyone about it. Things wouldn't be the same if we said anything; we could change the future. For better or for worse, we couldn't risk finding out.

I was so absorbed in my thoughts that when a low, husky voice sounded near my left ear, I jumped almost a foot in the air. Thankfully, I didn't scream. Either way, I think the squeak that passed through my lips was just as embarrassing. I whirled around, hand curled over my heart, to see an amused Lewis Nixon looking back at me. Letting out my breath in a sigh, I narrowed my eyes at the handsome intelligence officer and scolded him lightly.

"You almost gave me a heart attack, Nixon. Give a girl some warning next time you decide to go creeping about in the dark." No matter how startled I had been just a few seconds before, I found that I couldn't be mad at him, not really.

Nixon fell into step beside me, hands in his pockets as well, and we lapsed into a comfortable silence after he uttered an amused apology. After a few minutes, I decided to make small talk and said softly, "The sky is really clear tonight, isn't it?"

After sparing a glance at the sky, he soon turned his dark eyes back on me, making me extremely aware of how glad I was that it was dark out when I flushed under the intensity of his gaze. "It sure is," he replied just as quietly. "I have a feeling that it's going to be one of the last calm nights we're going to have for quite some time."

I chuckled under my breath, earning a curious glance from my companion. "I was just thinking the same thing before you snuck up on me," I admitted with a smile. "The next few months aren't going to be easy. I'm glad the boys are enjoying themselves tonight."

Nixon turned his head fully towards me for a few moments. After scrutinizing me for a few seconds, he sighed. "I take it you know quite a bit that we don't know," he said wryly. When I opened my mouth, he put his hands up and continued before I could say anything. "Don't worry; I'm not going to ask. I know how things are."

I smiled again before looking at the ground. My tone was serious, however, when I admitted, "You're going to lose good men. It's going to be hard, but they'll pull through. That's a damn fine group of men here. I'm proud to be here with them."

I kept my head down, but I could feel my companion's eyes on me as he asked quietly, "It's going to get bad, isn't it?"

I nodded, meeting his dark eyes once more. "It's going to get really bad," I admitted. "I won't say any more, but I will tell you that they do pull through. It could be worse, but they've been trained well."

We walked in silence for a few moments before he muttered, "Thank you."

I nodded in acknowledgement before adding as an afterthought, "Please don't tell anyone else. It's going to be hard enough for them without knowing what lies in store."

Nixon nodded. "Of course."

Deciding that the night was too nice to be spoiled with talk of war, I tactfully changed the subject. "So, what's your family like?" We spent the next half hour talking back and forth and swapping stories about our lives before the war. By that time, we had been standing in front of our little house for about ten minutes, laughing over stories from their basic training with Sobel. When my chuckles subsided, I looked up at our lodgings and sighed softly. "Well, this is me," I murmured before looking back over to Nixon, who was suddenly closer than I had remembered. My breath hitched in my throat when I gazed up into his dark eyes, and warmth pooled in my belly when I felt the heat that was radiating from his body. He was close, so close. Close enough that I could smell his scent. When I breathed in the scent of Vat 69 whiskey and (surprisingly enough) a sort of piney scent, the warmth in my belly roared into a raging blaze, making my knees tremble beneath me.

Time seemed to slow around me when he raised a hand toward my face. When he gently tucked a wayward auburn curl behind my ear, my breathing stopped altogether. He was close enough to me that I could feel his hot breath playing over my slightly parted lips, causing shivers of pleasure to run up my spine. Even as his calloused hand moved down to cup my cheek, I was subconsciously leaning closer to him, aching to feel his lips on mine. I hadn't known him very long, but there was something about Lewis Nixon that drew me to him. Our lips were a hairsbreadth apart when a shout broke the spell that hung over us. Before I could blink, the space between us had grown into feet, leaving me aching to feel his warmth once more. I sucked in a shuddering breath as he cleared his throat and said, "Goodnight, Miss Cutler." Then, he was gone. Though I was slightly pleased to notice that his voice had been strained, I couldn't help but curse the disturber of the peace for ruining the moment.

Disappointed, I disappeared inside, where I leaned with my back against the door to our room and pressed a trembling hand to my abdomen. _What have you gotten yourself into, Mallory?_

Shaking my head, I slowly began to undress, brushing my hands repeatedly over my belly (a habit I had acquired over the past year and a half). Once dressed in my pajamas and settled on the couch (it was my turn to give up the bed), I gazed out the window, replaying the feeling of the handsome officer's hand on my cheek. A few minutes later, the door creaked open to reveal Violet's head as she peeked inside and spotted me.

"Hey Mal," she said softly, opening the door the rest of the way, allowing room for her and Faye to slip into the room. "We though you'd've been asleep by now."

I sighed. "Nope."

Dressed in her skivvies and half under the covers, Faye frowned at me. "Are you alright, love?"

I looked over at her with a trembling lip. "Oh, Faye, I don't know!" I exclaimed.

Wordlessly, my younger friend opened her arms. Getting up from the couch, I shuffled over to the bed and dropped down in front of her, gladly crawling into the warmth of her comforting embrace. "What happened, sweetie?" she asked softly as she stoked my hair soothingly in a practiced manner.

Violet crawled into the other side of the bed and leaned into me, rubbing my back soothingly. It was a position we were all familiar with, seeing as how our nights were spent much like this when my nightmares woke me from my slumber. Safe in their embrace, I recounted the events of that night.

"I don't know, I just feel…scared, I guess." I admitted. "Excited and happy, but scared. I don't know if I can handle it. Faye, what if he finds out and pushes me away? What if-"

My friends shushed me earnestly. "Mallory," Violet whispered to me, "there is no reason whatsoever for him to push you away. It wasn't your fault. Now stop worrying, and let's go to sleep. I'm sure you'll feel better in the morning and you'll see that we're right, and when the two of you are married and popping out little brats, you'll say, 'oh, Violet and Faye, you two were right. I should listen to you more often,' and we'll all live happily ever after. The end."

I giggled at her haughtiness, earning smiles from my blood sisters. "Come on," Faye said, patting the bed between herself and Violet. "I'm sure we can make room for you up here. Let's go to sleep, love."

Sniffing, I wriggled between them, feeling much better. Violet rolled over and blew out the kerosene lamp, casting us into darkness, broken only by the stripe of midnight blue and white pinpricks that peeked through the curtains. Yawning, I snuggled down, smiling when two different arms draped over my waist protectively.

"Thank you," I whispered to the darkness, earning a soft 'welcome' from Faye and a grunt from Violet. Closing my eyes, I reveled in the feeling of security before whispering again, "I love you guys."

"Go to sleep!"

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Man, if I were that close to Ron Livingston, I would've jumped him already! Reviews are love, so pleaseplease**_**please **_**review! I'll try to get the next little bugger out ASAP.**

**-Cuppycake**


	15. Pegasus

**Where did all my reviewers go? Do I need to send out a search party? It's actually pretty depressing…**

**XXX XXX XXX**

"_Thank you," I whispered to the darkness, earning a soft 'welcome' from Faye and a grunt from Violet. Closing my eyes, I reveled in the feeling of security before whispering again, "I love you guys."_

"_Go to sleep!"_

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Violet**

The crickets were chirping loudly all around Faye, Mallory, and I as we laid in complete darkness near the riverbank. It was a balmy night, almost unusually warm for October. With my eyes closed, I could almost believe that I was lying in the pasture across from Faye's house with Faye and Mallory, just stargazing or resting. It seemed almost unreal that, just across the glassy river, almost a hundred and fifty British soldiers were waiting to be ferried back into safer territory by our battalion. The girls and I were waiting in silence, prepared to take care of any injuries the soldiers possessed once they stepped onto our side of the riverbank. In the moonlight I could just make out the outlines of the boats, filled to the brim with men, as they made their first stealthy return.

The dull thud that issued when the prow of the boat kissed the soil was the loudest noise around us as the British soldiers silently climbed out and made their way away from the river hurriedly. Having risen long before the men disembarked, Faye, Mallory and I crept toward the man at the head of the first group of soldiers.

"Good evening, sir," Mallory greeted quietly. "My friends and I are here to treat any of your injured. If you could have them come up front, we'll take care of whatever the problem is. I also have orders from our CO to make sure all who are fit to do so assemble in our mess, which is just over there." She pointed to the building and waved for one of the replacements that had accompanied us. "Private Wells here will escort you."

The soldier grinned at us, flashing a row of pearly teeth set in a handsome face. "I can't tell you how glad I am to hear that the first place we're taken is to an eating facility," he joked, albeit honestly. Offering his hand to each of us in turn, he introduced himself. "I am Lieutenant Moseley."

We each shook the proffered hand as Mallory replied, "It's very nice to meet you, Lieutenant. I'm Mallory, and this is Faye and Violet. We're medics from Easy Company."

"It's a pleasure to meet you ladies as well." Turning slightly, he waved back at the group. "Brighton! Watson! Front and center!"

Two soldiers trotted up to us, one of them with his arm in a crude sling. After offering a quick salute to the Lieutenant, they stood at ease before him, looking at us curiously.

"Two of our medics were killed, leaving us with only one," Moseley explained to us, gesturing to the sling. "These blokes here decided to tough it out rather than drive him nutters." Turning to his men, he said, "You two stay here and get yourselves patched up. Afterwards, you are to join us in the mess. I'm sure one of these lovely ladies will point you in the right direction." Nodding to us, he excused himself and led his men through the grass to the mess, just as the next group of Brits landed upon our shore.

"Let's take a look at you," I heard Faye say quietly to the man with his arm in a sling. "What happened here?"

The young soldier looked down at the cloth that supported his arm. "It was dislocated, ma'am. The Lieutenant set it back in place, but we thought it wouldn't hurt to keep from using it, so we fashioned this to keep me from hurting it again."

Shaking my head, I turned to the other soldier and asked him what the matter was.

"My hand, ma'am. Got the blasted thing stepped on a few days past, and it hurts like th' blazes when I try to move my fingers. Come to think of it, it was this bugger here what stepped on it." He gestured to his partner, grinning when he exclaimed, "How many times to I have to bloody say it? I'm sorry, alright? Cripes!"

Snickering under my breath, I asked the soldier to hold out his hand. "Try to move your fingers, one at a time," I instructed. He did so, sucking in sharply when he got to the ring and pinky finger. Gently taking his hand in mine, I inspected it closely, muttering my apologies when I put too much pressure on the offended fingers.

"Well," I sighed, riffling through my aid kit, "judging by the swelling and the pain, I'd say your last two fingers are fractured and the rest of your hand is just bruised." Unrolling a length of bandage and tape, I splinted the broken fingers straight and bandaged the entire hand. "It should be good to go in about a week or so, but keep the splint on those fingers and try not to aggravate them for another week or two. It'll ache quite a bit, so don't go bumping it on things." Handing him some aspirin, I patted his arm. "Stay well, soldier."

He offered me a bright smile and took my hand in his, kissing it before stepping away. "Thank you, ma'am. Every time I look at this hand, I'll remember your beauty and kindness."

It took all of my strength to keep from bursting out in laughter until he was out of earshot. Clutching my sides, I howled with laughter as tears streamed from my eyes. "Ahaha, can you believe him?" I gasped out, leaning on the giggling Mallory for support. "Hoo, boy. That's the best laugh I've had in a while."

Still giggling, Mallory puffed out her chest and attempted to deepen her voice as she grabbed my hand and breathed dramatically, "You shine like the light of the sun, my dearest Violet! Every time I look at my hand, I will think of how gently you touched me as you tended to my wounds. I will never wash this hand again, lest it erase your splendiferous essence!"

We exploded into furious giggles once more, finding it hard to keep from passing out as we fought for air. "Ahaha, Mallory I love you," I wheezed, leaning on her for support and fighting back another wave of giggles. I was still trying to get myself under control when my friend's laughter suddenly quieted into choking noises deep in her throat. Looking up to see why she had silenced herself, my giggles abruptly cut off as well when I found myself staring into the smoldering chocolate eyes of one Ronald Speirs.

_Oh God…_

"Oh…" I squeaked stupidly, blushing in embarrassment (okay, so the fact that he was staring me down with that sexy gaze of his might have had a _little_ to do with it). "Um…Lieutenant Speirs." I noticed Mallory edging slowly away from us. _Traitor! _"What can I do for you?"

The lieutenant shifted his dark eyes away from me for a moment, surveying the area (and allowing me time to expel the breath I had no idea I had been holding) before returning them to me. "I just thought I'd see how the operation is going," he said casually, but I had the strangest feeling that he wasn't entirely telling the truth. "Any trouble?"

I opened my mouth to answer him, but my dry throat wouldn't cooperate until I had swallowed hard. "Nothing, sir. Everything's quiet so far. I think the whole thing will go over without a hitch."

His eyes glittered with amusement and some other emotion, but his face betrayed nothing. "And how do you figure that, Miss Elder?" he asked, voice rumbling deep in his chest, causing me to shiver.

_Oh, dear lord. Is there anything about this man that is _not_ sexy?_

Fidgeting slightly, I looked at the ground before answering, "Oh, just a feeling, I guess."

Unbeknownst to me, the corner of his mouth pulled up slightly in a smile but disappeared long before I raised my head enough to look him in the eyes again. "A feeling, huh?" His voice was laced with amusement as well.

I gave him a crooked grin, ignoring the pounding of my heart. "Well, among other things," I replied cheekily.

The lieutenant smirked, causing my knees to tremble. _Now I know why fangirls do what they do, _I thought, licking my lips subconsciously. Lost in my embarrassed thoughts, I failed to notice his eyes flash to my lips.

"Well, since everything is quiet here, I believe I'll go up to the mess. Goodnight, Miss Elder."

"S-same to you, lieutenant."

As he made his way past me, his arm brushed mine, and I could have sworn I felt the ghosting of his fingertips across the back of my hand. Fire roared in my belly as my legs turned to jelly and my breath caught in my throat.

"Oh, and Miss Elder," came his voice from behind me. Breathing deeply, I turned around to face him. His eyes glimmered in the darkness.

"Yes Lieutenant?"

"Call me Ron."

Before my brain could process a reply, he was gone, merging into the darkness that led to the mess. Even so, I stared after him dazedly.

"Man," came a voice from beside me, causing me to squeak in surprise as I jumped about a foot in the air. "You're got it bad for him." Mallory rested her chin on my shoulder as she looked in the direction I had been staring.

"Sweet baby Jesus," I breathed. "If I actually had some courage, there would be nothing to stop me from jumping his bones every time I saw him."

Faye grinned and leaned against me. "That man is so hot he makes fire stop, drop, and roll."

I couldn't even admonish her for such a lame line; I was too busy trying to get my raging hormones under control. "Don't worry," she continued, nudging me. "I'm not gonna try and steal him away. I like my men a little more friendly."

"And Jewish," Mallory quipped with a grin.

Faye shrugged. "Hey, can you blame me?"

Shaking her head, Mallory patted my shoulder and wandered over to the newest group of incoming soldiers. "Come on," Faye chuckled, towing me after her. "We've got work to do. You can moon over your sexy soldier later."

The only thing I could think as we began patching up the wounded was, _Oh, I will…_

**XXX XXX XXX**

"Moose Heyliger and the American 101st have done the Red Devils a great service, making it possible for us to return and fight the enemy another day. To Easy Company, victory, and Currahee!"

A loud shout rumbled through the air after the toast was called. "CURAHEE!"

Mallory, Faye, and I were sitting, half in shadow, at a table in a corner of the room, each nursing a glass of alcohol. Small smiles adorned our tired faces as we watched the soldiers mingle, happy to be alive to see another day. It was only when another shout was raised, that my friends and I looked at each other with horrified faces.

"Why don't we have one of our girls sing us a song?"

If I had ever found out who volunteered us to be the entertainment for the night, I would have ripped their balls off. Luckily for them, I never did. Despite our protests, we were pulled out of our chairs and herded to the front of the room amidst loud cheers and catcalls.

"Guys," I protested, hands on hips. "Just because we're women doesn't mean that we can sing."

"Well, can you or can't you?" Skip Muck demanded from somewhere in the middle of the crowd. Before I could reply, however, Faye beat me to it.

"She can't carry a tune in a bucket," my traitorous friend piped up cheerfully, gaining chuckles from the men and a shrug from me. "Mallory, however," she slung an arm around our shy friend's shoulders, earning a pleading look (which she completely ignored), "is our little nightingale."

I couldn't contain my gleeful grin as our friend was helped onto a chair, despite her protests. "Go on, love," I called evilly to her. "Give us a song!" When the soldiers began to chant, 'sing! Sing! Sing! Sing!' she knew she wouldn't be able to worm her way out of it and gave up with a sigh.

"Alright," she grumbled, resigned. "But keep in mind, I'm not singing all night!"

She started easy, having not sung since before her 'death,' singing 'dream a little dream of me,' something which the men were sure to be familiar with. Her sweet voice carried easily throughout the room, earning an immediate hush from her audience, and when she finished, the applause was thunderous. Mallory blushed when the whistles and catcalls started again and attempted to flee from the spotlight. Before she could hop down from the chair, however, Wild Bill Guarnere shouted, "Sing us somethin' we ain't never 'eard before!" which was eagerly followed by the hearty agreement of the rest of the men.

Mallory frowned, trying to think of a song from later years that wouldn't totally appall everyone. "Okay," she replied slowly, "but I can't guarantee you'll like it." Then, to my slight surprise (and delight), she sang Nancy Sinatra's 'these boots are made for walkin'.'

The applause was just as loud when she fell silent for the second time. Apparently, they did like it. "What was that?" called one of the Red Devils from the back.

Mallory only grinned coyly and replied, "That is something for you'll find out in about 20 years or so." Needless to say, the poor soldier was terribly confused. Mallory then looked down at Faye with an uncharacteristically evil smile before looking back up to the crowd. "Alright, I've sung you a few songs, so I'm sure you're tired of hearing my voice now." She beamed at the responding cries of 'never!' and 'no way!' before continuing. "So who wants to hear Faye sing?"

Faye's grin morphed to a look of horror when I pushed her up onto another chair, cackling gleefully when the boys roared in agreement. "This makes me so happy I can't sing to save my life, you don't even know," I chimed, earning a few chuckles. Mallory turned her eyes on me and said, "Oh, we'll find something for you to do, little miss dancer." I paled and glared at her. "Don't even think about it, sister," I warned, though I knew it was useless. "Too late," she retorted before grabbing Faye when she tried to escape.

Poor Faye had always been terribly nervous about performing in front of people (other than Mallory and I), though she was a good singer and an excellent dancer. We never understood why she continued dancing and singing when she got so nervous about it. "Oh, no you don't missy," Mallory said, holding her still. Faye blushed and hid her face in her hands when the crowd chanted for her to sing, just as they had for Mallory.

"Alright, alright!" she finally cried, earning loud cheers. "But I'll remember this when y'all come to me with an injury." She got quite a few laughs in response, but from my point on the ground, I could see the blood drain from a few of the men's faces. Snickering, I leaned against the wall as Mallory nudged Faye, chirping, "Anything you can do, I can do better…"

I laughed out loud when Faye sighed and continued, "I can do anything better than you."

"No you can't."

"Yes I can."

"No you can't."

"Yes I can."

"No you can't!"

"Yes I can, yes I can!"

As the song progressed, Faye visibly relaxed and began having fun with the silliness of it all. She really did love singing; it was just easier once she got going. As my friends were entertaining the men, I took the time to survey the room. Before I got halfway around, my breath caught in my throat and my heart skipped a beat in my chest. Leaning against the wall directly across from me with his arms crossed was none other than the man who had not two hours earlier set my heart to pounding painfully in my chest. That wasn't really why the heat began to creep up my neck, though. It was because, instead of watching the show my friends were putting on, his dark eyes were trained directly on me, watching me shamelessly. It took all of my strength to tear my eyes away from him, but by the time I did the song was already over and the men were shouting once more.

Faye, blushing yet laughing, hopped down from her pedestal and made her way over to me. She reached her hand out to me, and I grabbed it before I really had time to think about what she was doing. I soon understood what she had in store for me when she began pulling me into the center of the room, where the men had created a large space for us.

"Come on, dancing queen," she laughed when I tried to flee. I finally broke free, but when I turned around, I faced a wall of men who were all grinning at me.

_I knew it was too easy. I should have seen this coming, dammit!_

Turning back to Faye with my hands on my hips, I hissed, "I hate you."

She only grinned at me. "I love you too, babe. Now let's see what you got."

With a sigh, I shrugged off my jacket, earning wolf whistles from the men. "Sorry boys," I teased, smirking. "That's all you get." I tossed my jacket to George, who jokingly muttered, "damn," and pouted. I threw him a wink before kicking off my boots and tossing them to the side. "What should I do?" I asked Faye. "My shoes are in my bag, but either way, I don't think they'd appreciate ballet very much."

Faye grinned before abandoning her jacket and boots as well. She held out a hand for me, which I took, and bowed dramatically over it, pulling me close to her and laughing when the men wolf whistled playfully. "Shall we dance, milady?" she asked me with a posh accent. After heaving a dramatic sigh, I realized that I was no longer mad that she forced me to dance. The boys deserved a little entertainment, especially with the events to come, so I figured it was well worth humiliating myself over.

"We shall," I replied, equally as snooty, before she led around the circle in a (slightly provocative) tango. She dipped me low, earning laughter and whistles, in front of Mallory, to whom I blew a kiss. When she dipped me a second time, it was not my friend's face I saw, but that of the very man I was trying not to think about. Even from my upside down view, he looked amused, as well as something else, but before I could decipher it, I was pulled upright by Faye.

"You did that on purpose," I hissed before she twirled me around again. I received only a wink as an answer, and sighed mentally, rolling my eyes. By the time we came to a standstill, we were both breathing heavily and laughing amidst the thunderous applause and catcalls.

"Whew. You're on your own now, sister," Faye panted after we bowed theatrically to our audience. "I'm beat."

Rolling my eyes at her, I pulled Mallory onto the floor instead. Her eyes widened. "What are you doing?" she bleated worriedly. "You know I can't dance to save my life! Hell, I can barely walk without almost killing myself!"

I grinned at her. "Relax," I soothed her. "It's not _dancing _dancing. You _do _know how to do line dances, no?"

Sighing in relief, she grinned back at me. "Line dances I can do."

"Good." Turning back to the boys, I called out, "Who wants to volunteer to learn some dances from our time?"

After Faye's and my own little display earlier, hands shot up immediately, causing Mallory and I to giggle. "Okay then…Malark, Luz, and…who else…?" I scanned the crowd for a moment before I found my last victim. "Ah! Lieutenant Nixon! Get over here!" When the man in question raised his eyebrow at me, I rolled my eyes and smirked. "Get over here, _sir._"

With a sigh, the officer set down his drink and walked over to us (though not without a hopeful look from Mallory), hands in pockets. "You know, I'm going to get you back for this someday," he assured me.

"Looking forward to it." Faye popped up next to me with her boom box in hand (as a dancer, she and I always had at least _some _form of music with us, and with our dance classes, she took to keeping a portable boom box in her bag). "Ah," I said, taking it from her. "Thanks babycakes."

"No problem, sugar britches," she called over her shoulder as she made her way over to her abandoned drink."Now that's actually a good idea," I muttered before calling out, "Would anyone feel like being a dear and getting me some alcohol? I think if I'm under the influence, I might actually be able to retain _some_ of my dignity."

Chuckling, Buck passed me a rather large shot of some sort of alcohol, which I downed in one go, shaking my head as it warmed my stomach pleasantly. "Now then," I called cheerfully, handing back the glass before setting down the boom box and searching for the right song. "This one is called the cha cha slide!"

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Woohoo! The gang is partying it up before things _really_ get hot (or cold, if you want to be literal). _Please_ review! I didn't get _any_ for the last two chapters. If I don't get any really soon, I might give up on this. For all I know, the last chapters stunk like a skunk! A very nice thank you is in wait for all who do!**

**-Cuppycake**


	16. Autumn Nights

**I've edited this chapter because I changed my mind on part of the plot and I like it better than before. Sincerest apologies for the humungous break; I've been out of the country and without a regular computer :/ And I know those of you who have already reviewed this chapter can't review again, so if you could add it to a review for the next chapter, that would be lovely. Ta!  
**

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Faye**

Crossing my arms, I leaned back against a table to watch Violet and Mallory as they took charge of the men. Appraised as I was when dragged into the spotlight, I was still the type of person who was soon forgotten as soon as I was out.

_Out of sight, out of mind._

For as long as I could remember, I had always been the one who shone when around my "friends," but as soon as we went our separate ways, I was forgotten.

_Faye who?_

When I spoke, half of the time my voice was drowned out by my "friends" talking over me. It seemed to me that I was only there because I was convenient, a bit of a pushover, willing to please.

Little by little, I was forgotten. At least, I was until Mallory found me one night, walking home alone in the rain. Because her umbrella was only large enough to shelter one person (and I refused to use it when she offered), she closed it and became drenched herself making sure I got home safely. I remember still how my heart swelled in my chest because of the kindness she had shown me. She, a complete stranger, had shown more concern for my wellbeing than had any of the people I had previously been acquainted with, and I knew that I would be stupid to let her go. I invited her in to dry off, and that night I made the first true friend of my life. It was not long after that we came across Violet, who was spending her summer visiting relatives who coincidentally happened to live in the house across the street from mine. I met her in a dance camp and we clicked instantly. Immediately, the three of us became closer than sisters.

For the first time in my life, I felt wanted and appreciated. We worked around each other's flaws and pushed each other to be the best we could possibly be. If it weren't for them, I'd still be back in Texas, letting people walk all over me.

I could spend all of my life trying, yet I would never come close to repaying the debt I felt I owed them.

_Maybe this war will give me the opportunity to try._

I was broken out of my reverie when a loud peal of laughter sounded from the gaggle of men trying to copy the dance steps that Violet and Mallory had shown them.

Trying_ being the operative word_.

A quiet chuckle passed my own lips when I spied Joe Liebgott looking rather lost amongst the men.

_Should I go out there?_

I wanted to join in on the fun but, as always, something was holding me back.

_You'll never make more friends if you don't get the hell out there and try_, nagged a voice in my head that sounded awfully like Mallory. Shaking my head, I smiled wryly and pushed away from the table. Instead of making my way to the dancefloor, however, I slipped to the doors and into the night that waited outside. I exhaled in a sigh and began to make my way to our dwelling, hands fisted in my pockets.

_How the hell did all of this happen? _I wondered bemusedly as I shuffled along. _One moment I'm in college; the next, Bam! It's World War two, take two, and we're teaching Easy Company a dance that won't be invented for another fifty years. _I let out a chuckle, shaking my head.

"Life is kinda weird like that, I guess…"

A light to my right caught my eye, causing my head to swivel around. A single light was burning in the window of the building across from me, casting the silhouette of Richard Winters against the curtains in the window. With a small shrug of dismissal, I started walking again, only to stop short when a sudden tug on my heart surprised me. The overwhelming memory of loneliness made me look up to the window once more at the sight of Easy's Captain. With a small sigh, I changed my direction and slipped into the quiet building.

_Well, Mallory _did_ tell me to be more social_, I thought wryly, remembering the nagging voice in the back of my head. Nodding at a man as I passed, _What was his name? Lewinski? Wazowski?, _I continued up the stairs to the only room light was peeking from. As the door was ajar, I merely pushed it open slightly and knocked meekly on the doorframe.

"Captain Winters," I greeted shyly when the man behind the typewriter looked up."

Richard Winters stood up, surprise evident on his face as he said, "Miss Eifler. Is there something you needed? Is everything alright?"

I smiled softly and gestured for him to sit back down while hurriedly assuring him that everything was fine. "I was walking back to my room when I saw the light on and thought you might like some company other than paperwork and reports."

A small smile turned up the corners of his lips before he finally said, "Well, thank you. I appreciate the sentiment." He looked around and shrugged helplessly. "I would offer you a drink, but I'm afraid Zielinsky has just retired for the night."

_Zielinsky! _That_ was his name! _

Shaking my head, I flapped a hand and chuckled. "No worries, Captain. I just came from the mess anyways. S'all good."

The man smiled and gestured for me to take a seat as he returned to his own. "Please, save the 'Captain' for the battlefield. Call me Dick."

I settled into the wooden chair, crossing my legs Indian style, and tilted my head. Hair cascaded into my mouth, causing me to shake my head like a dog and spit it out. The man across from me raised a pale eyebrow in silent amusement. It was only then that I thought about how dumb I must look every time I do that.

Scrambling for a distraction, I blurted, "May I call you Richard? I like your full name better, no offense."

On anyone else, that smile would have looked almost invisible, but on Richard Winters, it was nearly enormous. "I think I can live with that, Miss. Eifler."

I blew air out between my lips like a horse without thinking, before immediately clapping a hand over my mouth, embarrassed at my unattractive habit. Richard chuckled. Face red, I slowly brought my hands back down to my lap and mumbled, "If I get to call you Richard, I'm sure you can call me Faye."

Richard leaned back in his chair, smirk tugging at one corner of his mouth. "I don't know, perhaps Seabiscuit would suit you better."

My mouth dropped open in shock. I couldn't even find time to be embarrassed.

"Was that…? Richard Winters, was that a _joke_?"

The smirk remained. "I'm mature, not dead…Seabiscuit."

I crossed my arms and pouted. "Yeah, I can see just how mature you are, _Captain_."

Raising pale hands in surrender, Winters bowed his head. "Fair enough, _Faye_."

The smile never dropped from his lips, even when he returned to his reports (after asking if I minded that he work while we talk. I didn't). We passed an hour talking of our homes and families. I got a small glimpse into the mind of the man I had admired since I was old enough to understand the history of war.

"…And then I left. I said goodbye to Texas and Mallory and I moved to Richmond, where we met up with Violet."

He didn't reply as the typewriter made its constant sound in the background. He didn't need to. A companionable silence fell upon us.

"I ran Currahee, you know," I mused quietly after a minute or so. The typewriter fell suddenly silent when Richard lifted his eyes to mine in surprise. His expression was so cute, I couldn't help but smile.

"Really? When?"

I chuckled softly and looked up at the ceiling, mind reeling backwards through time. "Well, let's see… I think I had just turned sixteen, so…three and a half years ago. My time, of course." I looked back at him, feeling warm under the gaze of his pale eyes. "I had always admired you and the rest of Easy, so it was one of the best and most memorable moments of my life." A blush burned my face and neck. I looked away abashedly before continuing. "When I got to the top, I placed my hands on the marker up there, and I burst into tears."

His deep chuckle sent shivers down my spine. "Why in the world did you do _that_?_"_

I fidgeted, playing with my fingers as they sat in my lap while I contemplated the best way to put my feelings into words. Richard laced his fingers together and brought them up to his face so that his mouth was hidden from view.

"When I ran Currahee," I began slowly, returning my eyes to his, "I was doing something that you men had done so many times before. The whole way up, I couldn't stop thinking about all of the men who had died, and had done great things, things that changed history forever. I couldn't stop thinking that those men had done what I was doing then." I stopped to look up at him. His blue-gray eyes were trained steadily on me; I held them. "And then I reached the top and put my hands on the marker that every single one of you had touched so many years before, and I cried. I cried for the lives lost, for the camaraderie shared, for the love between all of you. I cried because I respect you more than you could imagine and it hurt me to think of the men who had stood there before me that sacrificed so much for their friends, their families, their country, the world, and, in a roundabout way, me."

A deep, but not heavy, silence fell upon the room when I finished. Embarrassed, I ducked my head, swearing as a furious blush spread across my face. Mumbling an unintelligible apology, I jumped from my chair, almost knocking it over in my haste, and almost ran to the door. My hand was on the knob when his soft voice turned my head reluctantly back to him.

"Faye." my name sounded beautiful when passing through his lips. I couldn't meet his eyes. "Those words mean more to me, and more to the men, if they were to hear them, than you could ever imagine." My eyes lifted in surprise. "Thank you."

My heart was fluttering in my chest, cousin to the butterflies that floated around my stomach.

"And thank you for the company," he said, just as soft as his first words to me.

I couldn't even find it in me to blush when I gazed into his stormy eyes.

"I'm always here, if company is what you seek. Goodnight Richard. Sweet dreams."

**XXX XXX XXX**

"You look like you could use a little help there, soldier," Violet quipped with a smile when she stopped beside George Luz, who was failing miserably at his attempt to dance the cha-cha slide.

Letting out a chuckle, George held his arms out and shrugged helplessly. "What can I say? You girls and your dancing are strange."

Violet gasped and tried to look offended, but the wicked grin that spread across her features blew her cover to kingdom come. "Maybe you men and your dancing are just too old-fashioned," she retorted, crossing her arms over her chest. "Besides, if you think this is bad, you should see us _really_ bust a move."

She then turned to Mallory, who was also manning the music, and called over the chatter, "Hey, girlfriend, how's about we try something a little easier? I don't think these men can handle the cha-cha slide just yet."

Mallory smirked and nodded her agreement, bringing the music to a halt. Nixon, who was by her side, sighed in mock disappointment. "Oh look," he snarked. "I guess this means we don't have to dance anymore." He made to saunter away, but Violet caught him by his collar, causing him to jerk back with a yelp.

"Oh no you don't," she chuckled darkly. "We're just getting started. Mal, the Cupid Shuffle, if you please. That should be easy enough."

Mallory's eyes crinkled in delight as she threw Violet a cheeky salute. "Ma'am, yes ma'am!" She barked before shifting through the songs to find the requested one.

Next to her, George sighed. "And I was doing so good, too," he mocked.

Amused, Violet quirked an eyebrow at him and drawled, "Lying is a sin, ya know."

It was well into the morning, but still dark, when Violet finally escaped from the hall. Heaving a sigh, she shoved her hands into her pockets and began to amble along the dirt path to the room she shared with her girls. A small movement caught her eye. Turning towards it, she suddenly found herself face to face with none other than Lieutenant Ronald Speirs, who was leaning against the wall of the mess, smirk firmly in place. Scowling to hide her fright at his sudden appearance, she tossed him a lazy salute and drawled, "Why, Lieutenant, what brings you to this side of the wall? Officers' quarters are in the opposite direction."

The man pushed himself away from the wall smoothly and stepped towards her. She took one backwards automatically to even the distance.

"Miss Elder," he replied, voice rumbling deep in his chest, "You and I both know very well that I know where the officers' quarters are." He took another step towards her, and she shifted backwards once more. His smirk widened, if that was even possible.

"Well, shouldn't you be getting to sleep? It's rather late, Lieutenant." Another step, and damn if she wasn't against the wall of the mess. The sneaky bastard had maneuvered her so that she was trapped between him and the very solid wall.

"I'm well aware of what time it is."

Violet swallowed when he shifted closer to her, dark eyes smoldering. She couldn't look away and felt her traitorous body responding in the most pleasing and infuriating way. Heat blossomed low in her core and her eyes became half lidded as he caged her in by placing his palms on the wall on either side of her head. Her heart thundered against her ribcage.

"I should be getting to sleep, lieutenant," She managed to whisper hoarsely as she became enveloped in the heat from his body and the scent that emanated from him.

His lips barely brushed against her ear when he leaned into her, causing her to suck in a sharp breath and hold it anxiously. "I thought I told you to call me Ron," he growled, lips skimming the taut skin of her neck, causing her knees to come dangerously close to buckling and flames to crawl across her skin.

It took all of Violet's strength to muster up the will to reply, "Why should I, if you call me 'Miss Elder?'" The strong retort she had been hoping for died miserably and ended up a breathy squeak.

The man merely chuckled and pulled away before disappearing into the night as quickly as he had appeared, leaving her trembling against the side of the mess with a rather unsatisfying and infuriating ache in her core. Violet let out the breath she had been holding in a heavy exhale, before she let her head fall back against the wall with a dull thud. She closed her eyes to the world as she

"Goddamn!"

**XXX XXX XXX**

Mallory sat, curled in the window seat of their room. She had remained in the shadows, unnoticed, when Faye had danced in and passed out, sprawled on the bed with a small smile on her face.

Hand on her abdomen, she stared blankly at the night sky. A familiar twinge of pain lanced into her heart when an old melody surfaced in her memory. Closing her eyes tightly against the pain, she sucked in a deep breath, holding it for a moment before shakily letting it go.

Leaning her head against the window frame, Mallory allowed a single tear to slide down her cheek. Bathed in the moon's pale light, she appeared to mirror what she felt inside: dead. Sure, it got easier with time, but the day of October 23 would forever weigh heavily on the young woman's heart. With the help of her friends, the pain was becoming more and more bearable, but for one day a year, Mallory found herself slipping uncontrollably into a fit of depression that nothing in the world could bring her out of.

Watched over by a dark pair of eyes in the window of the building across from hers, Mallory Cutler cried herself to sleep.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Whew! I'm glad that's over. It gave me hell to write. Once more, please review!**

**-Cuppycake**


	17. Enter, Foxhole Norman

**I'm so sorry I haven't been updating. My muse has just up and died, but hopefully she'll come back to life soon. This is mostly just a filler chapter. Cookies to whoever can find the mild reference to Pride and Prejudice! **_**And don't forget to go back and check out the new and improved chapter 16!**_

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Mallory**

The nights that passed after Operation Pegasus passed slowly, until the night of the 27th of October. I was getting ready for bed, singing softly under my breath, when Violet entered our room. Quickly motioning towards the prone lump under the bedcovers that was Faye, I shushed my friend in advance. Violet nodded and kicked off her boots before shrugging her jacket onto a chair.

"I know that face," I said softly, mothering instincts kicking in. "What's up Vi?"

My friend passed a hand over her face, smoothing away the frown that had previously inhabited it with a tiny groan. "We're moving tomorrow; shifting east. We'll be just across from Arnhem."

I pulled my pajama shirt over my head, eyebrows creased in thought. "But that's not really a _bad_ thing, right?" I was no history buff; I didn't really know exactly what each and every move meant for Easy Company.

"It's not _terrible_," Violet replied, shimmying out of her trousers. "But we'll have outposts spread thin on the line and Germans will pass through. We've only got 4 days until Moose gets shot and sent away, and then Foxhole Norman comes into the picture. We'll move to Mourmelon le Grande. After that, it's less than a month until we see Bastogne." Her voice had become slightly louder. "And then a lot of good men will be wounded and killed. Over half of the men sent into the Ardennes are never coming back alive or in one piece."

Before I could shush her, she merely said, "Faye's awake."

The lump under the covers rolled over and said childishly, "No I'm not."

Chuckling softly, I padded over to the bed and slipped between the sheets.

"Don't fret too much, Violet," I murmured to her as she settled onto the couch. "It's going to happen no matter what. If we try to change things, who knows how they'll turn up."

Violet sighed, frustrated. "I know that, Mal," she mumbled. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it." With that, she turned over on her side to face the back of the couch and fell silent.

"Goodnight," I whispered to the quiet room.

**XXX XXX XXX**

The next day, we did indeed move. Three days after that, Moose Heyliger was shot twice in the middle of the night. Easy Company soon afterwards met its new CO. Norman Dike seemed at first to be a good choice for a replacement, but it wouldn't be until later that Easy Company would find out just how much displeasure he would bring them. And us.

Being the only females in the entire army that were with the men on the front, Faye, Violet, and I were under his constant scrutiny and mild harassment. We were constantly being ordered menial tasks such as fetching coffee and other such things. One time, he even had the nerve to tell Violet that it was too strong and demanded she fetch another cup. It was only a week that Winters had gotten back from his furlough in Paris when Winters himself, Welsh, Nixon, Dike, Speirs, a Lieutenant from Fox whose name I didn't know, Faye, and I had been sitting at CP, discussing the failure at Arnhem when Violet came stomping in, knuckles white against the coffee mug she had a death grip on. Slamming it down in front of Dike, she ground out, "Your coffee, _sir_," and sat down across from the Lieutenant of Dog Company, crossing her arms in quiet fury.

I felt bad; she was only doing as he asked because I pleaded with her not to cause trouble. Grudgingly, she relented, but I could tell she was about to crack.

"Hmm." No thank you was issued. "It's a little strong, girl. Go fetch me a better cup."

The breaking point.

"Here it comes," I whispered to Faye, who merely rested her chin in her cupped hand with a smile.

_3…2…_

"GO FETCH YOUR OWN BLOODY COFFEE, YOU SEXIST WANKER!"

She was on her feet in less time than it took to blink, chair falling backward onto the floor. Hands slammed down onto the table top, she leaned menacingly over him. The men didn't even make a move to stop her. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ron Speirs lean back in his chair, eyes glinting as he watched the enraged woman. "I'VE _HAD_ IT WITH YOU AND YOUR PETTY ORDERS! THE FACT THAT WE ARE WOMEN DOES _NOT_ GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO ORDER US AROUND LIKE MINDLESS SLAVES! I'VE BEEN COOPERATING UNTIL THIS POINT TO KEEP FROM CAUSING TROUBLE IN THIS COMPANY, BUT I SWEAR TO _GOD,_ IF YOU ORDER ANY ONE OF US TO FETCH ANOTHER THING FOR YOU, OR IF I EVEN SO MUCH AS _THINK_ THAT YOU'VE APPROACHED MALLORY AGAIN, SO HELP ME, I WILL RIP YOUR TESTICLES OFF AND SHOVE THEM DOWN YOUR THROAT!" She leaned in so that her face was mere inches away from his. "Is that understood?" she asked slowly, voice deceptively soft.

My fingernails suddenly became _very_ interesting as the men in the room (Dike excluded) shot their eyes my way. Due to the distraction of my fingernails, I failed to miss the glares shot at Dike by Speirs and Nixon. The arm of the Intelligence officer, which had been slung casually over the back of my chair, slipped down to settle around my shoulders protectively. I could have even sworn that a growl escaped his throat, but I couldn't be sure, I was too distracted by the warmth of his arm to care.

After looking as if he were about to piss himself, Dike bristled, but it didn't quite have the effect he was going for.

"How _dare_ you threaten me, girl! You will treat me with respect! I ought to have you court martialed for…"

He trailed off when Violet cracked her knuckles against the table.

"I'd like to see you _try_ and court martial me, you arrogant sack of ooze," she cooed. Standing straight, her face hardened, as did her voice. "I treat with respect those who deserve it. Everyone in the room had my respect from the moment I met them, as did you, until you lost it the first time you ordered us around like we were inferior to you. Heck, I don't even _know_ him," she gestured towards the unfamiliar Lieutenant from Fox Company, "and I respect him. That's how I am. If you want my respect, you must keep it. Unfortunately for you, _Lieutenant_," she spat out his title as if it were something nasty, "My respect, once lost, is lost forever."

The man sat, staring at Violet for a moment, before standing up stiffly and muttering "I have to make a call."

The moment he was gone, Faye leaned back in her chair.

"That was hot," she said flippantly, causing Violet to laugh as she sank back into her seat.

"God, I hate that man," she groaned, covering her face with her hands. After a moment, she stiffened, peeking out at the men who were staring at her with amazed and slightly incredulous eyes. "I really just did that, didn't I?"

Everyone nodded.

"Oh Christ, I'm so sorry Captain Winters," she said hurriedly. "It's just, I was so sick of him treating us like we were inferior, and last week I found him preying on Mallory, and I just lost it! It won't happen again, I swear!"

Winters only shook his head with the barest of smiles. "So long as you never threaten _me_ that way, I'm sure we can come to an agreement."

He was met with a chorus of "Amen"s. The smile returned to Violet's lips.

"Well," I said shiftily, faking a yawn as I rose, "I'm pretty knackered, so I think I'll head to our room…"

"Bullshit," Nixon snorted, pulling me back into my chair by my collar. "It's only three in the afternoon."

"Yeah, Cutler," Harry Welsh added, "What was that about Dike 'preying' on you last week?"

"It was nothing," I said quickly.

"Like hell it was nothing!" Violet exclaimed irately. "You know very well what that did to you! You didn't leave our room for _three days_!"

"_That's_ why you were locked away?" Nixon asked, facing me. "So you _weren't_ sick like Faye told us!"

"Look, just drop it!" I snarled protectively, surprising everyone, myself included. I whirled on Violet. "And don't you _dare_ tell them!" Shooting up from my seat, I stormed out of the room, tears of irrational humiliation and anger stinging my eyes.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**3****rd**** Person**

Faye jumped up from her seat as well, sending an apologetic look over her shoulder at everyone before following Mallory out the door. The lieutenant from Fox excused himself politely as well, claiming work left undone.

Violet dropped her head into her hands with a heavy sigh that betrayed more anguish than her body language let on.

"Ms. Elder," Winters began, but was soon cut off.

"It's Violet, please. Or Vi, I don't care which. Ms. Elder is my mother." She peered up at him with a crooked smile that seemed forced.

"Violet," he amended with a bow of his head. "If Lieutenant Dike has done anything to Ms. Cutler, I need to know. Behavior like that can get him thrown out of the Army, and I think I speak for all of us when I say that I would rather be shot than have anyone, especially a woman, treated wrongly under my watch."

Violet ran a hand through her loose auburn hair and sighed in frustration.

"What the wanker did wasn't really _all_ that dreadful, I suppose," she said grudgingly, "but it was the effect it had on Mallory that was the worst. See," here she stopped herself. It took a moment of internal conflict before she could continue. "Something happened to Mallory, a long time ago, that left her unable to deal with…certain situations such as being pressed against a building in the middle of the night and being propositioned by a sleaze bag." Nixon's hands balled into fists under the table. "That's all he did, really, but it was the effect it had on Mallory that pissed me off. I can't tell you more, but he really didn't do anything that could get him kicked out of the Army." The men relaxed slightly. "Unfortunately," she added under her breath.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Meanwhile, in Mallory's POV…**

I hurried back to our room through the light misty rain that had begun to fall. I was halfway to the door to the building it was situated in when Faye caught up with me. She didn't say anything as we made our way up the stairs and into our room. She was silent as I kicked off my boots and threw my jacket towards the chair and missed. It wasn't until the quiet but heavy sobs wracked my body and I sank to the floor that she gathered me into her arms and held me the way a mother does a distraught child. It was in times like this that I forgot that she was merely 19. She smoothed back my hair and rocked me, whispering soothing words into my ear and singing snippets of lullabies to me as if I were a child. In a way, I was. Scared and broken on the inside in the way that children sometimes are when they lose a parent or other loved one, I was lost.

When I had cried myself out, I felt myself succumbing to the slumber that often follows the introduction of heavy tears. Through my clouded thoughts, I managed to whisper thickly in a sudden need to explain myself, "I was so scared. It was just like…"

Faye continued rocking me gently. "I know, sweetheart. But you don't have to be scared. You're surrounded by people who love you and will protect you until the day they die. They're not like him. He's gone. He won't hurt you ever again. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice saw to that."

I knew that. That knowledge, however, didn't keep the nightmares at bay. It didn't stop the rush of panic whenever someone grabbed my arm too roughly or when my foot slipped on the stairs. It couldn't erase the memories from my mind. It could never take away the scar on my heart from that night, so many months ago.

It would never bring my baby back.

**XXX XXX XXX**

**Bet you weren't expecting that last one. Whoo boy, angst much? And yes, she meant an actual baby. Sorry it's so short though., and I know Dike was pretty out of character, but I don't like him, so I'm making him an ass. Reviews are love! Please drop me a few. Hell, even a smiley face or a frowny face will suffice. **

**-Zoebear**


	18. The Last Days

**Greetings, all! Yes, I'm still alive. I wish the same could be said for my Muse. I feel downright horrible that I haven't touched this little baby since September, so here's a little bit to, hopefully, make up for it. I plan on having another chapter out, if not today, then tomorrow or the day after. Also, I feel I should add a disclaimer as well as I haven't done that in while. Here goes. **

_I do not own _Band of Brothers_, nor do I take credit for WWII. The only things I own are Faye, Violet, Mallory, and a few of the things you may not recognize. _

**To continue, I mean no disrespect to any of the men of Easy Company (or the 82****nd**** et al.) by changing facts or calling names, etc. Any hating or teasing or general snarkiness is purely for fanfiction's sake. **

**PS: I've changed my Author Name, again, which I've been meaning to do for the longest time. I am now ZoetheBrave (inspired by my friend Lauren).  
**

* * *

**3****rd**** Person PoV**

Days passed. The only evidence of Violet's outburst and storytime lingered in the cold glares shot at the girls, courtesy of Dike, and the angry glares shot at the aforementioned by just about everyone else. The men tactfully avoided mentioning Mallory's flight, and the girl in question breezily did the same. All was well, at least until it was time to move to Mourmelon le Grande.

For the men it was a wonderful thing. They were finally able to do laundry (much to the relief of themselves as well as everyone else within smelling distance), they enjoyed hot showers, and, on November 30th, they received their mail for the first time in many long weeks. The air was full of laughter, teasingly read letters from sweethearts, and noise from the rowdy gamblers. As far as they knew, their stay was long-term and would last until well after Christmas.

Three people knew otherwise.

While the men lounged about and enjoyed their days (in the time they didn't spend exercising, marching, and drilling), Faye, Violet, and Mallory spent much of their time together discussing in private what the future would entail for the group of men they had all grown rather fond of. Sometimes the future included certain men, but other times, like the evening of December 3rd as they were readying themselves for bed, more serious topics were broached.

"Bastogne." Faye was the first to say it. Violet and Mallory nodded gravely (well, as gravely as one could when standing in her underwear with a toothbrush hanging from her mouth). "Let's lay it out."

Violet spat her toothpaste into the sink and set her toothbrush down as she thought. "We have about fourteen days until we move out," she stated pointedly, beginning to pace. Mallory just lay on the bed and watched, knowing less about history than her companions. "Trucks will come for us on the seventeenth and we'll enter Bastogne on the eighteenth. It's going to be fucking cold, and we're going to be low on ammo, food, and winter clothes. There's gonna be a fuckload of snow and a fuckload of casualties."

Faye nodded in agreement. "There's gonna be a lot of shelling, and the town is going to be bombed. Lots of people are going to die."

Mallory rested her head on her arms. "And Renee," she said softly. "Renee is going to be in the med-station when it's bombed."

Violet and Faye nodded sadly. "I always hated that part," the former admitted.

Faye sat down on the edge of the bed, next to Mallory, who scooted over a bit to make room. "A lot of our men are going to be wounded or killed," she whispered, glancing over at the door. Violet sat on the floor at her feet so they wouldn't have to talk so loud. The last thing they wanted was someone hearing them discuss who would die before the year was out. "Hoobler, Muck, Penkala and Julien, for sure."

Violet counted off on her fingers. "Wild Bill, Toye, Gordon, and Skinny Sisk are going to be evacuated."

"Don't forget that one guy who gets paralyzed," Mallory piped up softly. "What's his name…"

"Smokey Gordon?" Violet offered.

"Yeah, that's the one."

Faye nodded. "Yeah, and Harry. He gets pinged too. And Buck, whose PTSD gets him out of there."

"Among others," Violet muttered. "That's only a select few. What else?"

The three were silent for a time, mentally flipping through their store of memories. It wasn't long until Mallory chirped, "Hinkel!"

Laughter burst out of Violet and even Faye chuckled a bit. "'_Ist das du_?'" the brunette quipped with a grin.

"Eat your armpit," Mallory snarked back, causing Violet to start another round of laughter. When the girl was finally reduced to the odd giggle or snort, the mother hen rolled over and pulled down the covers of the large bed. "Come on, Vi," she sang. "Bedtime."

The younger girl grumbled good naturedly but did as she was told and settled into the bed between Faye and Mallory, making sure to stick her cold feet onto the backs of the older girl's warm legs. Mallory yelped and swore at her friend, making the tyrant cackle.

"Goodnight Mallory," she cooed evilly and rolled over.

"Tart," Mallory grumbled grumpily.

"Bitch."

"Loose woman."

"Whore."

"Hag."

"Slu-"

"GO TO SLEEP!"

It was silent for a few moments before Violet whispered, "Slut."

"Go to fucking sleep, woman of loose morals, or I will stab you!"

Mallory snorted before smothering her chuckles with her pillow.

* * *

_December 4th, 1994_

The morning found the girls bright eyed and bushy tailed (or as bright eyed and bushy tailed as one could be in the middle of World War II). Mallory, who had woken up first, slipped into the room with two cups of passable coffee just as Violet shuffled out of the bathroom with a yawn. Faye, having just finished twisting her hair into a wrap-around French braid, took the proffered cup with a word of thanks, but Violet took hers with a little more enthusiasm and more than a few praises sung to Mallory's name.

"I have some news," Mallory said when she settled herself at the window. Faye nodded to show she was listening and Violet waved her cup. "All of the passes to Reims have been revoked."

Faye spat out her mouthful of coffee in surprise. "What?" she choked. "Why?"

Noticing the hint of panic in her eyes, Mallory understood immediately what was going through her mind. "We're not moving out, love," she assured her gently. They hadn't messed up history that badly, it would seem. "The boys have been getting into brawls with the eighty-second in Reims. Since they can't behave together, the higher-ups have decided to just revoke all passes. She looked down and fidgeted. "I spoke with Lewis over coffee this morning," she admitted softly, blushing.

Faye and Violet looked at each other, grinning, before sharing a wolf-whistle. "Woo! Get some, Mal!" Violet chuckled, making their friend blush even more.

Mallory blushed more. "It wasn't like that," she protested. "He told me about the passes being revoked." She bit her lip.

Faye zeroed in on the gesture.

"And?" she prodded. Mallory was leaving something out.

"And…most of the fighting was because of us," she mumbled, looking like she wanted to die.

Faye and Violet felt embarrassment rake down their spines. "What do you mean 'because of us'?" Violet asked quietly.

Mallory bit her lip again. "Well, apparently some of the men in from the eighty-second were talking about us," she admitted, looking away. "They were degrading us and talking about us like sex objects."

Violet's jaw tightened in anger, as did her fists.

"But what does that have to do with our boys?" Faye asked slowly, setting her empty cup down with a loud bang.

Mallory let out a small sigh and ran her fingers through her hair. "Our boys heard them talking and got a little angry, so they shut them up." Faye raised an eyebrow. "With their fists."

Despite their disgust at being talked about like an object of men's fantasies, Faye and Violet felt warm with the knowledge that the men of Easy Company had jumped so quickly to their defense, going so far as using physical methods of silencing the eighty-second boys. That warmth, however, was quickly doused by the chilly realization that the higher-ups were probably regretting letting them join the company, as they were now inadvertently causing trouble within the Army.

"Oh no," Faye moaned, covering her face with her hands. "Everyone is getting into trouble, and it's our fault! We're probably gonna get sent home now."

Mallory smiled slightly. "I thought the same, but before I could apologize for what happened between the boys, Lewis told me point blank that he and Harry were included in those doing the shutting-up and that he and the boys would gladly do it again."

Violet's jaw dropped. "What?" she gasped. "Loverboy and the Leprechaun fought for our honor?"

Mallory smiled. "That's what I said."

"W.O.W. Now that just makes me feel all fuzzy inside."

Faye and Mallory saw right through her nonchalance. She was deeply touched that the boys they had only known for a few short months were so ready to defend them, even if it meant losing their passes.

* * *

_December 7th, 1994_

Violet and Mallory were practically standing on top of each other as they peeked their heads around the corner of one of the barracks. Elbows poked and prodded as the two fought for a decent look at what was going on in front of them. A little ways away, Faye and Richard Winters were walking slowly, arm in arm, towards them, talking too quietly for them to overhear. Pulling back, Mallory and Violet squealed quietly and high-fived each other excitedly before turning to peek around the corner again. They were met, however, by one Ronald Speirs. Arms crossed over his chest and eyebrow raised, he asked, "What are you ladies looking at?"

Violet blushed violently and blurted "Nothing! Not you!" before grabbing Mallory's hand and speeding off with her, leaving a slightly flabbergasted Lieutenant behind.

"What in the hell?"

* * *

"So," Violet attacked as soon as Faye closed the door behind her, causing the girl to jump. "What's going on between you and the redheaded Eskimo, and what happened with young Joseph?"

Faye leaned back against the door, arms crossed and eyebrow raised much like a certain lieutenant had done earlier that same day. "Were you spying on me?"

Violet flapped a hand at her. "Oh please, enough with the affronted teenager stuff. Of course we were spying on you. Now spill."

Faye sighed and moved farther into the room, where she proceeded to kick off her boots and shimmy out of her trousers. "'Young Joseph' and I have recently come to a realization," she said snippily as she undressed.

Violet nodded knowingly, eyes closed. "He's gay."

Faye squawked, arm stuck in the hole of her shirt over her head, while Mallory guffawed from her place on the bed. "No, he is _not _gay!" she exclaimed huffily. "Not everyone has to have an experience with a gay man, Violet Elder." She stomped into the bathroom.

"Touché."

"We kissed, actually," Faye stated, "if you _must _know. A few days ago, and it was weird. I felt like I was kissing you or Mallory."

Mallory chuckled. "What did he say about it?"

Faye poked her head out of the door, toothbrush wagging from her mouth. "Ee 'aid ih wa 'ike ishing 'is ishter."

"Like kissing his sister, huh?" Violet mused as she got into bed, eyes sparkling. "So where does that leave you and the ginge?"

Over the sound of the faucet, Faye grumbled, "His name is _Richard._" She exited the bathroom. "And there's nothing between us. We're friends."

Violet pulled the covers up to her chin. "Uh huh. Whatever you say, girlyface."

Face flaming, Faye lay down and pulled the covers over her head.

* * *

_December 12th, 1994_

As the days wore on, the girls became jumpier and more worried. Faye had trouble sleeping and had the telltale shadows under her eyes to show for it. The men, luckily, were blissfully unaware of their impending move, but many did notice the change in the girls.

One night found many of the men in the dining hall with the girls, just as they were after Operation Pegasus. Mallory and Faye had promised the boys some music while Violet was making good on some of her promises to dance with a couple of the fellas.

"I really wish I had some music," Mallory mused as they made their way across the hall. "I hate singing _a capella._ Thank you, Bull." The large gentleman helped them up onto a table.

Violet put two fingers in her mouth and let out an ear-splitting whistle, causing the room to fall silent. "Thank ya, boys," she beamed. "Now, my girls here are going to give y'all some music, so if you want to be rowdy, y'all can scoot. Those of you who want to listen, and those of you to whom I've promised a dance can set your behinds down and enjoy, and I'll come find you."

A loud cheer went up as soon as she finished speaking.

"Alright, alright," Mallory laughed, causing them to quiet again. "We'll start off with some songs y'all should be familiar with, then alright?"

The men cheered again as Mallory cleared her throat and she and Faye began _Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy_.

With another grin, Violet sashayed over to the men who were scattered across the room and tapped her finger on her chin, playfully looking them over.

"George Luz!" she finally called brightly. The man in question grinned hugely and grabbed her proffered hand, leading her out to the floor while the others groaned and shouted playfully. "No wandering hands, Mr. Grab-Fanny," she warned, earning a wink from him. The radioman proved light on his feet and a terror on the dance floor as he whirled and spun Violet around. She was laughing heartily by the time Mallory began _Oh Johnny. _

Luz kissed her hand and let her go with another wink. She patted his cheek with a smile and held out her other hand to Johnny Martin, who accepted with a laugh. Out of the corner of her eye, Violet saw Faye pull Joe Liebgott onto the floor. Throughout the night, Violet danced with shy Shifty Powers, Joe Toye, Don Malarkey, Popeye Wynn, and Bull Randleman, while Faye got a turn with Babe Heffron, Bill Guarnere, and Buck Compton. The guys got a kick out of songs like _I'm Not Pregnant_ (sung by Faye), _Getting Lucky_, and _You Took Advantage of Me_.

It was nearing two in the morning when Mallory finally, tiredly, cleared her throat and called to the boys, "Alright ladies, this is the last song, for real this time." The men booed good naturedly and complained, but they girls could tell they were tired too. "I think you might appreciate this one a little bit."

It was a classic song, and even the men didn't have the heart to dance as Mallory softly sang _Georgia On My Mind. _Violet and Faye sat on the bench at her feet and smiled gently at the relaxed, if not slightly serious, faces around them.

"You know," Violet murmured softly. "There will never be another group of men like this in the history of the world."

Beside her, Faye nodded in agreement.

* * *

_December 16th, 1944_

Violet and Faye twirled around their room, laughing, to the music that played from the old radio that George had scrounged up for them. Mallory watched the two with twinkling eyes as they boogied to Glen Miller (who had been pronounced MIA just the day before, to their grief). Faye had just completed a very impressive pirouette when the music suddenly stopped, causing the smiles to fade from their faces.

"Shit," Violet whispered, eyes riveted on the crackling radio. "What's today?"

"It's December 16th," Faye answered, equally as quiet.

"Shit."

The radio crackled once more before the message they had been dreading broadcasted, clear and terrible. Bastogne was waiting, and their time was almost up.

* * *

**Whoo boy, I stayed up through the whole night to write that sucker. It is now 6:30am, and time for either some sleep or some coffee. Next up, Bastogne, and a little surprise, though not a very good one, I'm afraid. It's time for a little plot twist. **

**And so, my loveliest readers, please do review as reviews are the sustenance on which my Muse survives. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this newest addition to **_**The Adventures of Faye, Violet, and Mallory.**_

**-Zoebear**


	19. Welcome to Hell

**Alrighty, everyone. Here's the next installation, as promised. It's Bastogne time. Also, I made a mistake in the previous chapter. Easy moves out on the 18****th****, not the 17****th****. My apologies. Once more, I do not own Band of Brothers. If I did, I'd be swimming in money and handsome men. Ta~**

* * *

**Violet's PoV**

That night and the next day, Faye, Mallory, and I went around to the boys and the commanding officers and carefully hinted that if they had any extra socks or clothing in general, they should put it on post haste, and keep it on. We waved off any questions and, thankfully, they knew not to push the issue.

Sleep did not come to us that night.

For my own part, I spent the night alternating between pacing the worn floor and banging my head against the wall. I thought through the list of dead and wounded and contemplated every single way I could possibly save someone from their fate. I knew it was asking for trouble to change history, but it was all I could do to keep from going crazy, and it made me feel better. Faye sat in the chair by the window throwing her boot knife into the wood by her foot, tugging it out, and repeating the process. Mallory was the least destructive of the three of us, content to toss and turn throughout the night.

Most of December 18th was spent gathering as many medical supplies as possible. While Mallory and Doc Roe organized what we did have, Faye and I scoured the place high and low, finding material to make bandages, lost and forgotten syrettes, three lucky bottles of plasma, and a pair of 'sizzuhs.' Part of the reason for our unconventional scavenger hunt was our knowledge of our future need for supplies. The greater part, which neither of needed to say out loud, was the solitude. We didn't want to see the men's faces when they prepared to leave once more. It was bad enough knowing what was to come.

I felt sick to my stomach when the trucks finished rumbling in at 1720. Within a handful of hours, we would all be on our way to Bastogne, where we would be under frequent artillery fire and the occasional infantry attack.

I was unprepared for the next thought that hit me like a sucker punch to my already roiling gut.

We were only three young women in the middle of a war, and we were going into the Ardennes, where over half of the men who entered were either killed or wounded. Until that moment, I hadn't thought of us as regular people. We were from the future and it had already been proven once that we were able to die with the best of them. We had come this far without being seriously wounded, minus a gunshot here and some bruises and scrapes there, but we weren't any different than the men who were going into the forest to die. We were, for lack of a more definitive word, mortal. There was absolutely nothing, not even some futuristic mumbo jumbo, that would save my sisters and me from death in that forest.

Now, don't get me wrong, death did not frighten me, not in the least. As they say, "been there, done that." No, the thought that sent nausea and panic raging through my body was that of losing Mallory or Faye. They were my sisters, my best friends. They saved me from a life of loneliness. They calmed my temper and stuck by me through thick and thin. They were a better family to me than my own had ever been. I would take a bullet for them, give my life for theirs in a heartbeat, but today we would be going a place worse than hell. In this hell, I couldn't protect them, not against artillery. The thought made me sick. I had made a promise to them, years before, that I would protect them with my life, before I even knew the true meaning of protecting with one's life. I had promised to keep them safe even before I was baptized by fire, before I was shot, before I ran down a street crowded with German soldiers with nothing more than my legs to carry me and a MacGyvered belt of grenades.

One could say I did all that to stay alive, to help my comrades in arms. After all, we weren't alone when I did those things. They would be right, I suppose, but only slightly. It's more than that. I live for them, and I will die for them.

But how could I die for them when their fates would be so utterly independent of mine?

I didn't notice that I had stopped walking, but Faye did. It wasn't until I felt her hand on the back of my fist that I realized that I was standing in the middle of the mess hall, jaw clenched and fists trembling.

"Hey," she whispered, violet eyes wide. "Vi, are you alright? Violet, talk to me. What's wrong?"

I opened my mouth but no sound came out. How could I tell her that my anger and frustration came from the thought that I wouldn't be able to die for her?

"It's nothing, Faye. Don't worry about it."

She wasn't going to drop it, though, and opened her mouth to argue with me, but I was saved by Mallory.

"Hey you two." She appeared in the doorway, looking anxious. "It's almost time to roll out. Let's go get our stuff so we can be ready when it's time to go."

I leapt at her suggestion. "Sure thing, Mal," I muttered, slinking towards the door and slipping past her. "I'll get your bags for you, don't worry about it."

I wasn't fast enough, however, and caught Mallory's soft question as she stared at my retreating back. "What's wrong with Violet?"

I sped up, turning the corner and taking the stairs two at a time to escape my sisters.

"I dunno."

* * *

It was 1930 when I slipped outside, one bag on my back and one in each hand. I looked around the throng of people for my Mallory and Faye, but I didn't see them.

"Violet!"

There they were, in the back of a truck already. I sauntered over to them, keeping my face in a mask of composure. They were leaning against the backboard of the truck with Lipton, while Winters, Nixon, Harry, Ron, Peacock, and a few other officers lined the sides. "Hello ladies," I called breezily with a shit-eating grin before turning to my girls. "Faye. Mallory."

Harry and the girls laughed loudly as Nixon and Lipton grinned. Winters' eyes twinkled above his straight face as I slung the bags into the laps of their respective owners, making it a point not to meet the eyes of the officer from Dog Company.

"We tried to save you a seat, Vi," Mallory said when the chuckles died down, "really, but some Lieutenant from Fox snuck in before you got here." She looked abashed and bit her lip worriedly while the man in question appeared to be catching some Z's.

"Eh, no worries," I shrugged, slightly relieved that they wouldn't have the chance to interrogate me about my earlier behavior. "I'll just go sit with my other girlfriends in that truck over yonder," I gestured towards the vehicle that was slowly being filled up with other boys from Easy. "I'll catch you cool cats on the flip side, ya dig? Peace out, homeslices."

As I turned on my heel, I heard Harry whisper, "What did she just say?"

With a grin, I slipped in front of Wild Bill and scooted up into the truck ahead of him, earning a "Hey!" from the Philly native.

"Snooze, ya lose, bucko," I sang, settling down. With a grumble, Bill hoisted himself up and plopped down next to me.

"Yeah yeah, crazy dame."

"You love me," I shrugged, patting his arm. He chuckled and slung the arm over my shoulders, pulling me into his side.

"Just don't tell any of the guys, alright?" he joked conspiratorially. "I gotta keep my rep up."

"Wouldn't dream of it, big guy."

Liebgott, Buck, Skip, and Malark clambered in after us, settling down against the backboard and sides respectively. The truck rumbled beneath us as I flashed them all a grin.

"Howdy boys," I called. "Fancy seeing you here."

The truck jerked underneath us, sending us tumbling to the side before they could reply. Cigarettes were quickly lit and passed around as the cold night air whistled past. I sat in silence for a while, being unable to help the feeling that something was off. It wasn't until Buck spoke up that I realized what it was.

"I guess the blackout's not in effect. Luftwaffe must be asleep."

Right. The headlights.

"What a difference a day makes, huh Lieutenant?" Gordon Carson replied before taking a drag from his cigarette.

From beside me, Bill grumbled in turn, "Christ, I miss those C-47s."

Tab, reaching for a cigarette offered by Skip, quipped, "We got a tailgate jump here."

I tuned out of the rest of the conversation, huddled in my jacket. My brain was acting up again. We were actually on our way to Bastogne. Christ, the boys had no idea what they were walking into.

I shivered, blowing into my hands to warm them before jamming them under my armpits, and thanked God for whatever stroke of luck had brought my bag with me when I ended up in Normandy. It contained things mainly useless in most aspects of war, but it did contain a few helpful items as well. Thanks to my dance lessons, extra clothes and dance gear took up a permanent residence in my bag. Before we left, I slipped into my dance tights, thin sweatpants, extra tank top, and dance sweater. I gave my full-length leg warmers and long-sleeve shirt to Mallory, who also received compression shorts from Faye, who was equipped with tights, leg warmers, and a sweater. **(A/N: if you've never worn full-length leg warmers, those things are **_**toasty!)**_

I knew we wouldn't be warm in any sense of the word during our stay in the Ardennes, but with any luck, we wouldn't freeze our tits off.

Somehow, I must have fallen asleep, chin tucked into the collar of my jacket, because the next thing I knew, Bill was nudging me.

"Hey doll, wake up. We're here, wherever the hell that is."

It was still dark, so at least I had the small mercy of a lack of sunlight terrorizing my enlarged pupils. I stretched as best I could from my seat before allowing Bill to help me out of the truck.

"Whoagod," I exclaimed as soon as my feet hit the ground. My knees locked up and I had to hobble away from the truck to give the guys room to get out too. "I've been sitting for so long my legs forgot how to be legs."

I hobbled around in circles for a few minutes while the rest of the trucks arrived until I was somewhat capable of normal movement. Despite my earlier awkward stiffness, I couldn't help but laugh at Mallory and Faye as they experienced their own lack of leg-cooperation. They limped over to me slowly, shivering. It wasn't until then that I noticed how fucking cold it was.

"Sweet baby Jesus," I griped. "It's colder than a witch's titty in a brass bra."

Faye gave a wavery chuckle. "And it's only December."

I swore through chattering teeth, the air around us thick with curses and quiet conversation. Farther away, though, rang the sharp tattle of gunfire. Fires were being lit using pools of gasoline and men flocked to them. I started towards the nearest one, tugging Mallory along behind me, but stopped short when I finally saw the columns of haggard looking men shuffling listlessly from the trees.

"Oh my god," Faye breathed from behind me.

I had seen it on the TV countless times but seeing the actual event right in front of my eyes really struck a chord. It was unbelievable. More than half of the men sported bandages, some bloody, others cleaner. When they drew level with us, I could hear them muttering to the men around us.

"Go back," they said. "Get out of here."

The men seemed just as appalled as we were, but they soon snapped out of it and started badgering the weary souls for ammo. Mallory lightly touched my shoulder and whispered that she was going to see about any spare medical supplies. I nodded absently, eyes riveted on the scene before me. Faye edged closer.

I scanned the faces around me. Is that what we would look like after a few weeks in those woods? Good Lord. I'm not religious by any stretch of the imagination, but at that moment, for the first time in over five years, I looked up to the heavens and prayed.

When finished with my plea for salvation, I dropped my eyes once more to the men around us. There was a rather large man standing about ten feet from me, which was about ten feet closer than I was to everyone else. I got a bad feeling in my gut when my eyes landed on him. His shoulders were slightly stooped, yet they seemed familiar to me. He wasn't a man of Easy Company, of that I was absolutely certain, but my mind wanted to place a name with his figure. His face was turned from me.

"Violet!" Faye called to me from beside Bull. When did she get so far away? Before I could turn to answer her, however, the man in front of me looked in my direction and met my eyes. A slow grin spread across his mouth, baring his teeth. My skin crawled even as my breath caught in my throat and the blood froze in my veins. I wanted to scream, but quicker than I could blink, he had turned away and disappeared among the crowd of men.

"Violet?" Faye tugged on my sleeve, having appeared at my side. I couldn't breathe. "Oh my God, Violet, what's wrong?" Small, cold hands cupped my chin and turned my face towards her. "Violet!"

I reached up and took her hands in mine, squeezing them tightly. "Faye," I whispered, feeling a familiar fear and nausea creep over me. "He's here."

Faye's violet eyes searched mine frantically, worriedly. "Who's here, Vi? Tell me, who did you see?"

My chapped lips hurt as I dragged my fear-thickened tongue over them. The only noise I could produce was a whisper. "Roger." I gasped, squeezing her hands again. "I saw Roger."

* * *

**And there you have it, ladies and jellyspoons. Who is Roger? Well, I guess you'll just have to wait and see. Please review and let me know your thoughts on this chapter (and do include any guesses as to who the mystery man is. I suspect some of you may have already figured it out though). Thanks for reading, my lovelies. Ta~**

**-Zoebear**


	20. The First Barrage

**Greeting, fair readers. Here is the next installment of Love and war! Now, I know I have more than a few readers out there, but I'm only getting like two reviews per chapter. I'd really appreciate it if you lovely people could just drop me a line letting me know what you think of this story. It's really starting to bum me out :-( Also, many thanks to my new friend Claire (Tabitha Caine) and reviewer Yorkshire the UK for giving me ideas for the Faye/Lewis relationship. I hope it does not disappoint.**

**Once more, I do not own Band of Brothers!**

* * *

**Faye's PoV**

For the longest time, I simply stared at Violet as she held tightly to my hands.

"You _what_?"

Her eyes, frantic, searched mine. "_I. Saw. Roger,_"she hissed before looking around shiftily as if the man in question might appear.

"_Roger_." There was no possible way. "You saw _Roger_."

"How many times do I have to say it, Faye? Yes, I saw Roger! He was right there!" She gestured at a spot a few feet away. "He looked over when you called my name. He saw me! He _grinned_ at me!"

I glanced over. There was no one there except for Malark, Skip, and Penkala. Violet pulled me to face her again, running a pale hand through her loose, slightly tangled, hair, wincing when it caught. "He was there, I _swear_ it."

I didn't want to doubt my friend. With the gravity of the situation, should it prove to be true, I knew she wouldn't ever lie about such a thing, but my logical side refused to let me accept what she was saying.

"Look Vi," I squeezed her elbow gently and led her away, towards the rest of Easy. "I want to believe you, I do, but you have to realize how this sounds. First of all, we're about to go into Bastogne, which is enough pressure as it is, and you've been stressing lately. Maybe you just had, like, a stress hallucination or something."

She frowned. "Yeah, maybe." I knew she wasn't convinced in the slightest.

"And secondly," I glanced around to make sure Mallory wasn't within earshot and found her fifty feet away, chatting with Lewis Nixon, "Secondly, you're telling me you just saw a man who was sentenced to death in the state of Texas almost three years ago, which is actually like sixty years in the future."

Violet tugged her arm from my grasp and rubbed her face with her hands. "Look, Faye," she snapped. "I am very well aware of how ludicrous it seems, but you have to believe me. I mean, we came here when we died, who's to say something of the sort didn't happen to Roger, for whatever reason? Do you really think-" She looked around for a second before turning me away from the men and lowering her voice. "Do you really think I'd make up something like this?" She looked hurt that I would even think such a thing, which tugged at my heart. "Do you really think, even if I did have a 'stress hallucination,'" she air-quoted the words, "that what I would be seeing is the man who almost _killed_ Mallory, who almost killed _you_? I think I'd be more likely to see Kenny Loggins or the Hamburgular before that man!"

I stared into her face for the longest time, thinking about her words. I don't know what it was, but something was telling me that she was right. Her face brightened when I sighed harshly and rubbed my forehead.

"Okay," I sighed. "Okay, I believe you. But what do we do?" I looked pointedly over at Mallory, who was still blissfully unaware but now searching for us, and she followed my line of sight before turning her head away.

"I don't know," she muttered.

"Well, should we tell her?" I chewed on my bottom lip. To be honest, I really didn't want to, not until we knew what Roger was planning to do, as he obviously knew we were here. "Vi, I don't know if we should tell her."

The look on her face told me that she was thinking the exact same thing.

"So don't. At least, not yet. Let's wait and see what happens. If he shows up again, we'll tell her."

She seemed so certain, I had to agree. "Okay, we'll wait." I saw Mallory out of the corner of my eye, closer this time. "Now come on, it looks like we're moving out." I grabbed her hand and pulled her away. Without a word, she laced her fingers in mine and squeezed gently, a gesture that gave me strength and hope and confidence all in one. Mallory finally saw us and gave her gentle smile before holding out her own hand and taking my other.

Hand in hand, we walked with the company of heroes who would burn their mark into the face of history, towards the forest that would be the burial ground of many and had yet to determine the fate of three girls who somehow ended up in the right place in the wrong time.

* * *

"It's so goddamned cold!"

Violet slammed her shovel into the frozen ground violently and chipped at side of our slowly growing foxhole. "The next person who says that," she gritted out through her shivers, "will be shot." She paused for a second to slam her shovel down again. "And stabbed."

The air was filled for a few moments only by the thumps of shovels and the whumps of flying dirt before a voice from farther away shouted pointedly, "God, it's co-"

Frank Perconte ducked to avoid the clump of frozen earth aimed at his head.

"Suck my dick, Frank," Violet snapped at him while the men surrounding us hooted with laughter. A few of the replacements stared open-mouthed at the girl. "What?" she snapped at them with a gleam in her eyes, causing them to jump and quickly return to their work. I couldn't help but snigger as I thrust my own shovel into the ground, earning a wink from my friend.

By the time Mallory appeared through the trees, I was sweating from the effort of digging, which I knew would only make me colder when I was once again stationary. "Here," she said, crouching down and holding out a hand for the shovel. "I'll take over." She jerked her head the way she came. "CP is over thataways. I think Lew wanted to talk to you." My head snapped up and I met her eyes. "_He_ wants to talk to _me_? _Why_?"

Mallory took the shovel and slip into the two foot hole. "Well," she replied, beginning to dig and nudging me out. I obeyed. "He didn't exactly _say_ that he wanted to talk, but he's asked me about you quite a bit, so I think you should go talk to him yourself. I have a feeling he'd like that."

I stared at her for a moment, slightly confused. Why on earth would he want to talk to _me_, of all people? I must have stared a moment too long, however, because Mallory looked up from digging and made a 'shoo,' motion at me. I didn't argue, merely raised my hands in surrender and retreated in the way she had first come.

The walk was mostly silent, save the noises of the men digging and the quiet conversations and curses (and an amusingly high number of exclamations regarding the temperature). Humming softly to myself, I sidestepped foxholes, some complete, others less so, and nodded greetings to the men, sometimes offering a word or two with a few of those I was more familiar with, like Popeye Wynn.

"Hey Miss Eifler," he called when I approached the foxhole he shared with Shifty. "Where you off to?"

I smiled at the boys. Shifty blushed slightly and nodded his head in greeting. Such a sweetie.

"Away from your skinny ass, Popeye," Joe called from the next foxhole over, causing Shifty, Popeye, and Floyd Talbert to chuckle.

"I'm afraid to say it's true, Pop," I giggled, lifting my hands in a 'what can I say' gesture. "I'm on my way to CP to schmooze with the big wigs, see if I can't score myself a nice feather bed for my foxhole."

"Aw, hell," Popeye replied jovially. "Maybe you can bring me one too; it's about time I got caught up on my beauty sleep."

"Not that it'd do much good," Tab joked, tossing some dirt at the fair-haired man. Popeye chucked some right back, causing Joe to duck and yelp, "Watch it!" when it soared by his face.

With a laugh, I patted Shifty on the shoulder and whispered conspiratorially, "Make sure these children don't hurt themselves, Shifty; we need all the guns we can get."

The sweet boy nodded back with a shy smile and replied, "Yes ma'am. I'll even put them in time-out if I have to."

I was still laughing as I walked away.

* * *

The sun was high in the sky when I strolled nervously into CP, which was just a little hut on the edge of the foxholes, garnering the attention of the two men that currently occupied it. Two sets of eyes, one light blue, another so dark they almost seemed black, turned my way, making me fidget slightly and smile shyly. The piercing blue eyes met mine first, sending butterflies fluttering through my stomach and a blush rushing up my neck to cheeks pale with cold. Their owner offered me a shy smile, which I gladly returned before turning to the other occupant of the hut. His smile was less bashful, but still slightly hesitant as if he were unsure of how I would take being smiled at. His eyes were warm, though, and I felt at ease.

Richard cleared his throat as he stood. When I glanced over at him again, he smiled another sweet smile and said softly, "I'm just going to go see how the men are settling out there."

My eyes followed him out. When he was gone from my sight, I turned back to the remaining captain with a crooked smile.

"He's good," I joked. He chuckled.

"He really is." He sat down, gesturing at the seat Richard had just vacated. "I take it you're not here for tea and crumpets."

I sat. "I can see why you're the Intelligence Officer," I teased. "How perceptive of you."

He merely smiled and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "So," he said. "What can I do for you?"

What _could_ he do for me? I was here simply because Mallory had a feeling. Now that I was near him, though, I could see why. There was something about Lewis Nixon that seemed _familiar._ Comforting, somehow.

"Why do you seem so familiar?" I blurted.

Ugh. Hadn't meant to say that.

The man, to his credit, didn't look at me strangely. He merely blinked. "Familiar."

I nodded slowly. He sighed, leaning back and running a hand through his dark hair.

"Miss Eifler-"

"Faye," I interrupted firmly.

"_Faye_," he amended with a chuckle. "How much of your past do you remember? Before you were found by your grandparents."

I frowned slightly. Was this relevant? "I don't remember anything." Well, that was a lie. "Actually…"

He nodded encouragingly, gesturing for me to continue.

"I do remember light. Like, not a shunshiney kind of light, or the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, but…It was darker. Orange, maybe, and it flickered." I closed my eyes, straining to remember.

_Focus, Faye, focus. _

"No!" My eyes snapped open. It was clearer. "It wasn't a light! It was _fire_!" I nodded, sure of myself. "A lot of fire, all around me."

When I met Nixon's eyes again, he didn't look surprised as I had been expecting. Instead, he looked…sure of something. Confident.

"Faye," he said. "Do you still have that picture you showed us the day we found you?"

_What? My picture?_

"Of course I do," I replied slowly, already reaching into my left breast pocket where I kept the photo in question.

"I had a sister," he said suddenly as I drew it out. His eyes, though focused on the picture in my hand, were miles away. "She loved raccoons and she was adamant on letting everyone know that she was seven and a half years old. Then our house caught fire one night."

I started at the word 'fire.'

I _had_ a sister. Past tense. _**Fire.**_

_**Why is he telling me this?**_

"When the fire was finally put out, she was nowhere to be found. There was no body in the house. We searched for years and never found her. Her name was Faye."

My eyes fell to the picture cradled in my pale hands.

_Faye and Lewis._ _**Lewis.**__**Faye**_ and Lewis.

"_The people who took me in decided to name me Faye, after the girl in the picture. They supposed I was related to her somehow."_

_**The girl in the picture.**_

_**Faye and Lewis.**_

"_I_ was seven when my grandparents found me." My voice sounded strange even to my own ears, as if I was just realizing something important. "I didn't know where I was from or who my family was, but I sure as hell knew that I was _'seven and one-half years old.'"_

I was staring into the eyes of the boy when it hit me.

"_What's so great about this stupid raccoon anyways?"_

I had a stuffed raccoon when I was a child. I had seen it in the window of an antique store when I was eight and had insisted on possessing it. I named him Wally.

"_Faye Marie Nixon, how many times have I told you not to climb up trees…"_

"_**I love you Lewis."**_

Lewis Nixon was silent, watching me as the gears turned slowly in my head. It was impossible.

_And so was time travel._

_**My god.**_

"Lewis," I whispered, testing the name. It felt right. I slowly lifted my eyes to meet his. "_You're_ Lewis." I turned the picture toward him. _"You're Lewis." _

His dark eyes burned into mine, urging me to understand.

My hand lifted of its own accord to the locket at my throat that held two small pictures. I opened it with a shaking hand, already knowing what I would see. It clicked open and sat in my dirt lined palm. Despite the pang of homesickness I felt when I gazed upon the weathered faces of my grandparents, I only had eyes for the other picture. A mirror of the face from the picture clutched in my other hand stared back at me from a 1997 Kodak picture that was taken at the Texas State Fair.

My companion said nothing, but his silence spoke volumes. "Do you remember?" His voice was soft.

I neglected the question, staring at him with wide violet eyes.

"You made me get stuck in a tree," I said slowly, going out on a limb. A spark lit in his eyes and I knew my intuition was correct. "I was up there for an hour."

A joyful smile brightened the face that was pale from war and cold.

"Well, if you weren't so touchy about that stupid-"

"Wally is _not_ stupid!" I exclaimed reflexively, stomping my foot as my younger self had done in my dream. Silence filled the hut. "Whoa," I whispered after a moment. "_Total_ déjà vu."

Lewis stood with a surprised laugh and reached down to pull me to my feet, knocking the picture from my hands and sending it fluttering to the ground. He stopped suddenly when I was up, however, and released me, a small frown creasing his forehead. He let go of my hands but his arms were still slightly outstretched across the space between us, hanging anxiously, if not a little awkwardly.

I bounced on my toes for a second, biting my lip, before throwing my arms around his neck. His arms found their way to my waist, holding me close even as his face sought refuge in the crook of my neck where I felt warm, wet drops plop against my cold skin. I hugged him tighter, eyes falling shut of their own accord.

This was all really weird. Like, weirder than ketchup on rice. But it felt –at the risk of sounding mushy and cheesy- _right._ Like it was an action practiced many times before in years past. I felt safe and comfortable in his arms. I think I could get used to having a brother, but it would definitely take some time.

"So," I said into his shoulder, "now that I have a legitimate excuse to nag you, you really should stop drinking. And hiding your stash in Richard's footlocker."

His startled laugh warmed me to the core and brought a smile to my face.

Yep. I could get used to this.

* * *

It was pitch dark when I sauntered back to our foxhole (though it was only six in the afternoon) and had been for almost two hours. Lewis and I had spent hours ourselves, relaying stories of our lives, of Easy Company, and of the family I could not yet remember, only stopping when we were joined by Richard and Colonel Strayer. After that, I hastily took my leave -not wanting to arouse questions with my presence- but not before promising Lewis that I would talk to him again soon. I met Richard's eyes on the way out, blushing predictably when he offered me another bashful smile.

_Be still, my heart!_

Geez, what was it about that guy? It certainly couldn't be that he was without a doubt the most polite man I had ever met, or that he was incredibly thoughtful and charming. Or that he had adorable red hair and beautiful blue eyes and a crooked smile that sent my heart aflutter.

Nope. Definitely not.

Lost in my thoughts, I nearly fell straight into the foxhole I was to share with Violet and Mallory. The latter looked up at me, face pale in the darkness, as I windmilled my arms to regain my balance, foot on the edge of the hole. Smiling widely, she placed the pine branch in her hands on top of the others that served to cover our new sleeping space.

"Faye!" She exclaimed, clapping her hands. "Come see our foxhole!"

Confused by her obvious and slightly misplaced excitement, I raised an eyebrow. "Where's Violet?" I asked instead, cautiously sliding into the hole.

The motherly woman merely grinned wider and gestured for me to slip under the pine canopy. After staring at her for another moment, I slowly did so. When my eyes fell upon our foxhole, my jaw dropped. There was an entire underground room concealed by the pines!

"Hi!" Violet chirped from the other side of the hole. "Pretty sweet, huh?"

_Sweet_ did not begin to cover it. We were in the middle of _Bastogne_, for Pete's sake, and in the few hours that I had been away, the two had somehow managed to dig from the frozen earth not only a regular foxhole, but an adjoining space as well that was _completely underground._ The whole thing was large enough to fit the three of us, proven when Mallory slid in next to me, and was carpeted by a thick layer of slightly damp pine needles (plucked by Violet, whose hands were sticky with sap). There was even a smaller hollow hacked into the side of the room, into which they had placed their helmets, canteens, and bags.

I stared at them with wide eyes. Mallory, upon seeing my expression, clapped her hands delightedly and exclaimed "Underground Fort! Woohoo!"

Violet snorted and tossed some branches, bare of pine needles, into the other part of the foxhole.

"Holy _fuck_," I breathed, in awe of my friends. "How in Merlin's pants did you manage to do this? Most of the guys barely have _half_ this much dug out, and they're all…you know, _muscley_!"

Mallory shrugged demurely. "It wasn't that hard, believe it or not," she admitted. "I used to make underground forts all the time when I was a kid. Granted, the ground wasn't half frozen then, but the trick is just to shave off little bits at a time."

"Well fuck me dead," I whispered, shrugging off my bag and putting it with the others. "You two are probably the coolest people I have ever known."

Violet reclined on one elbow, tossing her long auburn hair over her shoulder.

"Tell me something I don't know."

* * *

It was 1230 when I emerged from the foxhole again, leaving a snoozing Violet in my wake. She had stayed up through the night, as we agreed we would each do for the time we were to remain in this godforsaken place, in case of any midnight emergencies. Mallory had woken me about an hour earlier, whispering that she was going to see Lewis. Sleepily, I waved her off with a mumbled, "Get some, girlfriend."

Blinking in the sudden change in brightness, I shuffled my way over to a clump of me, nodding to Joe Domingus as I passed him.

"Well hello sleeping beauty," Don Malarkey called to me with a chuckle as I neared them. "Have a seat." He patted the ground next to him. I was about to sit before I noticed the figure behind him.

"Hey 'Gene," I greeted the Cajun medic who was sitting nearby on an empty box that had once housed grenades. He offered a small smile and a nod.

"Mornin' miz Faye," he replied quietly.

Smiling, I settled down next between the two redheads of the group, Don and Babe, just as Joe Domingus appeared once more. Gladly, I held out my mess tin and cupped the base of it with one hand as the barely warm piece of _something_ was plopped into it.

"Thanks Joe," I grunted, making a face at whatever it was that we were supposed to consume, while Babe offered him a 'God bless ya.'

"Joe, these smell like my armpit," Don complained, poking at the lump with a spoon.

"At least your armpit's warm," Skip quipped from beside him with a grin.

The cook stopped in his tracks and turned back to us. "You want syrup with that?" he snapped sarcastically.

"Hey Joe, be honest, what's in these things anyway, huh?"

Joe waved a finger at the Mick. "Nothin' you won't eat, Malarkey," he sassed back before trudging away.

"I won't eat Malarkey," Spina piped up, earning more than a few chuckles.

"Hey, hey, maybe Hinkel would like your share."

"I should have shot him when I had the chance," Babe muttered, blushing.

"What," I replied quietly with a smirk, causing the men to glance at me. "Running backwards, Babe?" Don slapped my back with a grin as everyone laughed again.

Everyone quieted down when Lieutenant Peacock walked up. "Anybody seen Lieutenant Dike?" he asked, seeming a little more than irked at the constant absence of the man.

Everyone shrugged, knowing that if Dike didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be.

"Uh, try Battalion CP, sir," Don replied, slightly more sober and with a straight face. Peacock sighed and retreated, shaking his head.

I scoffed and muttered scornfully, "Try Paris."

Don nudged me with his elbow, chuckling "Try Hinkel." The men snorted again.

"Hinkel, sveetie, I'm home!" Spina sang in a dreadful, nasally German accent, leaning forward as if to embrace the blushing Babe. The younger man slapped his hands away before turning to Doc Roe.

"Hey, hey Eugene," he called, waving his fork. "I think Lieutenant Dike has got a full aid kit, try him."

"Yeah, I'm sure he's not using his," Don snorted.

_Aid kit? _I wondered._ What's Gene need with an aid kit? _

Private Julian spoke up as well. "Maybe Hinkel's got a syrette for ya."

_Oh. That's what._

Gene smiled and shook his head, taking a drag on his cigarette.

"Eat your strudel," Skip muttered, nudging Julian with his foot.

Don grinned and tried his hand at a slightly better -but still miserable- German accent. "Hey Hinkel-vinkel, eat zer ahmpit, ja?"

I couldn't help but chuckle and shake my head. "You guys are a class act."

* * *

Luckily, the day and the following sixteen hours of night passed without incident. There was no sign of movement from the German soldiers that we all knew were out there in front of us and no artillery rained upon our heads. The air grew colder with each passing hour, inciting more curses and complaints. They weren't serious, though. Everyone was cold. It was merely a way to release a little bit of frustration, swearing. With the night, though, came at least a foot of soft, dry snow.

When I poked my head from the foxhole as the sun rose over the trees, the whole forest was blanketed and dusted with white and the low-lying pearly fog had settled again. I was well-rested from another peaceful night, but I knew our time of rest had come to an end when I heard the first voices shout, "INCOMING!"

"Shit!" I hissed, dropping back into the foxhole and scooting over to Violet and Mallory. No time for gentleness, I shook them roughly and tossed their medic kits at them.

"Get up, get up!" I cried, jamming my frigid helmet over my fuzzy braid. Violet snapped upright, immediately awake at the first sound of exploding trees, but Mallory, who had stayed up the night, was a little slower at rising. Violet scooted past me and popped out of the hole just as the first cry for a medic rang through the crisp air, clasping me on the shoulder as she went.

"Be careful!" I shouted after her, pulling Mallory up into a sitting position and setting her own helmet on her head. "Come on, Mal, you gotta wake up. I know you're tired, sweetie, but you gotta get up. You can sleep later."

Finally, she woke up enough to sling her bag over her shoulder and adjust her helmet. We sat, huddled together, flinching every time a mortal exploded. As expected, it was only a few minutes before the call for a medic was heard again.

"I'll go," I said, already moving to slide out. "You stay in here, got it?" I looked Mallory straight in the eyes. "No heroics, just stay in here unless you hear someone call for a medic. This is the safest place you can be right now."

Mallory just nodded, looking a bit pale. She's tough, but being under artillery fire is a little different than shooting someone from a safe distance. I knew she would do the best she could, but she was terrified. Everyone was terrified. And we had a right to be.

Giving her one last nod, I slipped out of the hole just as a mortal exploded to the left of me.

"Shit!" I yelped as bits of wood and metal rained down on me.

"Medic!"

Covering my head with my arms, I crouched and hurried towards the pained voice. Stopping to leap into a foxhole or two as more mortars soared overhead, I made my way over to the man who had been hollering for a medic and finally slid to a stop at his side. He was clutching at his leg, face contorted with pain. I didn't have to ask him where he was hit as his thigh and bare foot were peppered with chunks of wood and shrapnel.

"What's your name, soldier?" I asked to distract him while I tried to pull out as much of the wood as I could before tearing open a sulfa packet with my teeth.

He yelled in pain when I tied a bandage around the wounds on his thigh before gritting his teeth and grunting out, "Carson, ma'am. Gordon Carson."

"Well Gordon Carson," I said soothingly, fumbling with a syrette, "you're gonna be just fine. It's not as bad as it looks." My blood-slick hands finally steadied and got the needle jammed into his thigh. Almost immediately, his face relaxed as the pain began to dull.

I peered at the foxholes around me, searching for George Luz. Finally spotting him, I patted Carson on the shoulder and assured him that I would be right back before leaping out of the foxhole and sprinting over to the radioman.

"George!" I shouted, sliding into his foxhole. "You gotta call Battalion CP, we need a jeep down here to take Carson to Bastogne. He's hit in the leg and he can't stay on the line." As soon as I saw him reach for his radio, I jumped up and raced back to the wounded soldier.

Lifting him up, I slung his arm around my neck and wrapped my arm around his waist and began the agonizingly slow journey out of the foxhole and through the woods towards the town. We had only gotten about fifty feet when, emerging from the ever present fog, a tan jeep sped up and skidded to a stop in front of us. A medic from Bastogne jumped out and helped me get Carson onto the stretcher on the front of the truck.

"I'll come with you," I said to the medic, panting from the effort of half-dragging the wounded man. "I should see if I can pick up any supplies." He merely nodded and leaped back into the jeep, barely giving me time to hop on myself before he took off again.

Bastogne was a ragged town, grey and chaotic. As we drove through and pulled to a stop in front of a church, I suspected it had been a beautiful little town once upon a time. The piles of dead soldiers that decorated the streets, however, quickly leeched any charm or beauty the architecture held in my eyes.

Another medic from the hospital raced out as we got out of the jeep and helped the other man carry Carson inside. I followed quietly, but stopped as soon as I entered the inner chambers of what was had once been a house of worship. Dozens of wounded men lay around the church, bleeding, moaning, laying frighteningly silent in the stale, warm air.

_Why are they still here?_ I wondered in horrified awe. _These men need to be evacuated!_

Catching the sleeve of a passing nurse, I voiced my question to her.

"We can't evacuate," she replied, voice tinged with an African accent. "The Germans have surrounded us. Bastogne is as far as they go."

She gently pulled away and hurried off to tend to a soldier who was crying out for someone named Molly. It was a saddening sight; I had to turn away. Glancing around again, I spotted Eugene making his way up the steps I had just descended with a box in his arms. The loose end of a bandage that hung over the side told me what was inside. I sighed.

_So much for getting supplies._

Before I left the hospital, I found Gordon Carson, who was settled nicely with a bottle of crème de menthe. I couldn't help but chuckle at the slightly pleased look on his face as I clasped his shoulder with a word of goodbye.

"Hey," he grabbed my sleeve before I could take my leave. "How come there's so many wounded people around here? Aren't we evacuating anybody?"

I smiled faintly. "Haven't you heard?"

He frowned in response. "I haven't heard a damn thing."

I patted his hand and turned back once more, calling over my shoulder as I left, "They've got us surrounded—the poor bastards."*

Back in the clean, if not frigid, air, I felt I could breathe again. Seeing the men in that hospital reminded me of some of the wounded and dead men I had seen when in Normandy and Carentan. Deep breaths helped beat back the nausea.

"Hey, Miz Faye," a voice called from my left. It was Eugene. "You goin' back?" he gestured at the jeep he had set the box of supplies in.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm coming."

I trotted slowly over to him and slid into the back of the jeep, offering the Cajun medic a small smile. He returned it, and then we were off. Back to the woods.

It was dark when I finally slid back into our foxhole, and for a moment I just sat there, leaning against the wall of the hole, exposed to the light snow that had begun to fall once more.

"Faye?" Mallory's voice, as always, was soothing against the ears that had once more beheld the cries of wounded men. Refusing to meet her eyes, I shook my head. She, taking the hint, fell silent.

Slowly, I crawled into the enclosed part of our hole and took of my helmet, setting it down beside me. Mallory wrapped her arms around me without a word and stroked my tangled hair with soothing hands. I closed my eyes and tried to block out the memories of blood and sinew and bone, but it was a hard thing to accomplish. Violet rubbed my back comfortingly, and that is how we stayed for the rest of the day, emerging only to nab a serving of Joe Domingus' refried (and barely edible) beans before slinking back down into the darkness that was only slightly warmer than that outside.

That night, the Luftwaffe bombed the town.

* * *

**Oh, crappy ending, I know, but this sucker is already 5,500 words and I need to get to bed. As always, my beautiful readers, please review. Pretty please. I promise to have another chapter out as soon as I can.**

**-Zoebear**

***Real quote and conversation (with a few words changed here and there), but by an unnamed medic. I do not own.**


	21. Getting In The Christmas Spirit

**Hello dear readers. I apologize once again for my tardiness in posting a new chapter, but I have a fairly good excuse, I promise. I haven't been writing lately because of a number of things: high school graduation, college preparation/moving out of my house/college itself, and the death of a very good friend who lost his valiant battle with brain cancer. **

**I got a few PMs imploring me not to abandon this story. I'm extremely touched that I have readers that like it so much, and I can assure you that I have every intention of finishing it, no matter how long it takes me. Thank you, dear readers, for staying with me for so long. You're lovely, really. Especially you, Julia!**

**One last note: My DVD of Bastogne is not working, so I'm going off of memory here. A lot of the dialogue will not be included in the Bastogne chapters. **

_**Once again, I do not own Band of Brothers or the characters therein. I only own Faye, Mallory, Violet, miscellaneous little cameo characters, and (unfortunately) Roger. I also do not own any poems, songs, books, etc. that may make appearances in this story. **_

**And we're off!**

* * *

**Mallory**

Let it never be said that Joseph Toye is a good singer.

Good lord, can he not hear himself? I'm sure the Germans think we're stomping on cats over here. After a particularly long serenade, I entertained thoughts of surrendering myself just to give my ears some peace. A few foxholes over, a slap rang out. Blessed silence fell again.

Thank all that is holy on this earth for Violet.

Now that I wasn't focused on trying to shut out the awful caterwauling, I could finally remember that it was freezing out here. And by freezing, I mean that I'm pretty sure the snot has frozen in my nose. My hands have bypassed white and are a constant purplish blue. My teeth have started to ache from the constant chattering. The incessant misery and discomfort, however, did not affect my skills of observation.

And oh, was I observing.

There was something up between Faye and Lewis. I wasn't entirely sure what it was, exactly, but over the past few days I had noticed _something._ On top of that, Faye and Violet were hiding something from me. I didn't know what that was either, but I had a feeling it was big and it was bad. The two were being awfully cautious around me and it was starting to make my figurative hackles rise.

For the moment, though, I decided to let it be. I trusted my friends enough not to let anything happen to me, so I put it to the back of my mind. Instead, I focused on deducing exactly what it was about Faye and Lewis that was trying to get my attention. I studied them intently as they sat together, poking and prodding at Joe Domingus's beans. They took a bite –which must have been particularly unsavory- and pulled the same face of displeasure. My brain tickled once more. Narrowing my eyes, I scrutinized more intensely. Faye shook her head amusedly at something Dick said and ran her hand through her hair (a habit of hers). Only a few minutes later, Lewis ran his pale fingers through his own hair, mussing it and causing a few dark strands to fall into his beautiful eyes. His _very_ beautiful eyes.

_Focus Mallory!_

Right. Back to observing.

Another bite of beans; they pulled the same faces as before. Good lord, they make the exact same face. If I didn't know better, I'd say they were related_._

Too bad I knew better.

* * *

Night fell swiftly, as always. I was tired. We were all tired. Unfortunately, bad dreams fell just as swiftly as the dark that preceded them. For me, they became more and more frequent until it got to the point that I stayed awake until I was too exhausted to be afraid. Faye and Violet worried, I knew, but there was nothing they could do.

Accompanying the nightmares was the feeling that I was being watched. It's a silly feeling to have, surrounded by others at all times, but none of the men of Easy Company had ever made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end simply by looking at me when my back was turned. No, the feeling was malicious. It was malicious and it frightened me to the point that, for a few days, I kept someone by my side at all times, be it one of the girls or Lewis or one of the other men we had become friendly with. Though the feeling never really went away, nothing ever happened to me, so I decided to put it to the back of my mind. I was surrounded by a bunch of men who had already gotten into fistfights over our reputations, so I allowed myself to relax and told myself that everything was going to be okay.

Hopefully.

* * *

As far as days in Bastogne go, December 23rd wasn't too terrible. The sky was clear, for the first time that month, and our C-47s took advantage of that. Spirits were high that day. The medics were pleased and relieved to receive medical supplies, and everyone in general was ecstatic to get packages of food. They may have contained meat in a can and slightly stale crackers, but to hungry and frozen men who had been living off beans for what seemed like forever, it was heaven. The lemonade powder was, naturally, used to make snow cones (complete with the obligatory "yellow snow" quips).

"Speaking of," Violet sighed after one such remark, "Gotta go dehydrate myself."

* * *

**Violet's POV**

Let me tell you, the only thing worse than being in Bastogne is having to pee in Bastogne.

With an internal groan when the need made itself known again, I heaved myself up from the log I had been sitting on and ambled into the part of the forest that was occupied only by abandoned foxholes. I found a decently wide tree and trudged over, looking all around to make sure I was entirely alone.

With another groan, I quickly dropped my pants, cursing at the frigid air, and did my business as quickly as possible. Thanking whatever god was listening that I had been trained to use squat toilets from an early age, I hurriedly pulled my skivvies, tights, and trousers back up, silently bemoaning the lack of toilet paper. By the time any of us could get a proper shower again, we would all be thoroughly rank.

I slowly began my trek back to the group of fellas (and girls) I had left, taking the time to enjoy the morbid peacefulness of the frozen forest. I was maybe halfway back when I felt a hand land on my shoulder. Having been lost in though, I reacted purely on instinct and grabbed the arm the mystery hand was attached to, spun around, twisted the arm behind my assailant's back, and shoved him against the nearest tree.

I think the husky chuckle was what surprised me the most, as I hadn't yet recognized my "attacker."

"A little on edge, are we, Miss Elder?" asked Ronald Speirs from where he was making friends with a snowy tree.

Embarrassed, I dropped his arm like a hot potato and turned him around by his shoulders, dusting him free of bits of bark and snow. My face was burning; I couldn't look him in the eyes.

"Don't sneak up on me like that, Lieutenant," I scolded him. "We're in the middle of a war."

"I won't make the same mistake again, lest you have your gun with you."

I snorted and rolled my eyes, finally able to look at him.

And boy, was he a sight for sore eyes.

I mean, _wow._

After a few moments, I realized that my hands had come to a standstill on his chest and yanked them away, blushing once more.

"Is there something you needed, Lieutenant?" I grumbled, slightly grumpy in my embarrassment.

He took a step towards me, causing me to take one in the opposite direction. "Can't I stop by to say hello?"

He took another step, as did I.

"Technically," I mumbled –what was it about him that made me lose my cool– "You haven't even said hello." Suddenly, my back was against another tree. I couldn't escape my proximity to him without making it painfully obvious.

"That's very true," he admitted thoughtfully. "Hello, Miss Elder."

_Smartass._

"Hello, Lieutenant," I sassed back pertly.

His chest was almost touching mine, he was that close. "I thought," he murmured slowly, leaning in to brush the shell of my ear with his lips, "I told you to call me Ron."

My head fell back against the tree with a soft thump as shivers raced through me. _Oh, sweet baby Jesus in your manger…_

After mustering all of my willpower, I managed to clear my thoughts just enough to reply softly, "I thought I told you that there's no reason to do that if you don't call me Violet." The words came out less than bold and more than husky.

I didn't even notice him move and yet he was there, softly pressing me farther into the tree. He lifted his head just enough that I could look into his dark eyes. The heat I saw in them made my knees tremble, but his hips were pressed into mine, keeping me on my feet. My breathing came in short pants. I saw his eyes flicker to my lips before meeting mine once more. What he saw in them must have encouraged him –not like he's the type of guy to need much permission– because the next thing I knew, I could feel his breath mingling with my own. He was extremely close to me, and moving closer. I swear, I could feel the heat from his lips, they were so close to mine. My eyes, half lidded already, slid shut in anticipation.

"Violet?"

Mallory's voice was so near I damn near jumped a foot in the air. My eyes shot open. Ron was still watching me carefully, almost daring me to make a sound.

"Coming, Mal." I called, holding his gaze. My body throbbed for him, but something in me wanted to leave him just like he left me the last time he had me pressed into a wall. Pushing lightly on his broad chest, I slipped out from underneath him. I felt the chill that his proximity was keeping at bay immediately and longed to return to him, but I resisted the urge. Well, almost.

Slipping back up to him, I curled my fingers around his collar and brought my lips to his ear.

"See you later…Lieutenant," I whispered, skimming my own lips along the shell tauntingly.

I dropped my arms and retreated quickly, tramping through the snow to Mallory who was quite a few yards away. When I reached her, I laced my arm through hers and pulled her away, resisting the urge to look back.

_Until next time, Ron._

* * *

**Mallory's POV**

"What took you so long?" I asked when Violet finally appeared. Strangely enough, she looked slightly flushed and her hair was a little mussed in the back. Upon closer inspection, I detected tiny bits of flaky tree bark caught in her dark auburn braid.

"Just thought I heard something," she replied a little too flippantly, taking my arm and steering me away from the deserted part of the forest. Suspicious, I chanced a look back in the direction she came from, only to catch sight of a tall figure leaning against a tree quite a few meters back. Leaning against the large trunk, he watched our retreat with his arms folded over his chest. Glancing from him to Violet's hair, to her flushed face, and finally back to him, I put two and two together.

"Really now?" I asked, skepticism dripping from every word. "And how is old Sparky, by the way?"

The girl choked on the hurried answer she was about to throw at me. The flush that crept up her neck to her cheeks only made me chuckle and tuck her arm more tightly in mine. "Come on, Pinocchio. Let's go see what our baby is up to." She didn't reply.

By the time we made it back to our foxhole, Faye was braiding her hair loosely in preparation for sleep. It was my turn to keep vigil that night, so I merely sat on the edge of the foxhole as Violet slid in and joined the youngest of our trio.

"So," Faye said nonchalantly, tying off the end of her braid with an elastic, "Did he kiss you yet?"

Violet, who had been taking a sip from her canteen, promptly spit it out. I couldn't help but laugh at the expression on her face.

"Does the whole goddamn army know that he snuck up on me just now?!" she demanded breathlessly, wheezing slightly before letting out a chesty cough. Faye patted her on the back, grinning.

"Nah," she replied. "I just happened to catch sight of him making his way over toward where you went to whiz and I sort of guessed." Looking over Violet's coughing form, she smiled wider. "And it would appear my assumption was correct."

I swung my legs a little, leaning forward on locked arms.

"So _did he_?" I whispered conspiratorially, looking around to see if anyone was within earshot.

Violet glared at us, emitting one final cough before hissing, "No, he didn't, thank you _very_ much. _You_," she swung around to face me accusingly, "interrupted before he could."

I suddenly felt bad.

Well, almost.

"I'm sorry, buttercup," I simpered, fighting the urge to smile again. "But you know what that means, don't you?"

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms huffily. "And what does that mean, Mallory? Please, enlighten me."

I leaned even farther forward and whispered, "When it finally happens, it's going to be the best goddamned kiss you've ever had." Leaning back, I nodded in a satisfactory way. The wrinkles in Violet's brow immediately disappeared. She knew I was right, and it was written all over her face. She opened her mouth to retort, but the loud crunching of approaching boots in snow stopped her short. I looked behind me to see none other than Lewis Nixon striding towards our foxhole, hands in pockets and cheeks and nose pink from the cold. Butterflies erupted in my stomach, as they usually did when he was near, and I looked away to hide my blush. My cold hands flew to my cheeks in a sad attempt to quell the heat that was rising, but to no avail.

"Good evening, Miss Cutler," his baritone voice greeted from right behind me. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

I turned back to see him peering amusedly over my shoulder and into our foxhole, where Faye and Violet were curled up and snoring loudly. Raising an eyebrow at them, I 'hmmph'ed in response before looking up at the dark-haired man standing beside me.

"Apparently, Captain, you're not. What can I do for you?"

He smiled crookedly, eyes darting back to the "sleeping" girls in the foxhole before meeting mine. "Well, Miss Cutler, I was wondering if you'd like to go for a walk with me. I happen to know a lovely forest with some beautiful scenery that's not too far from here."

I held out my hand to him, which he promptly took –cue butterflies– and helped me up. Once standing, I distracted myself for a few moments by brushing snow and dirt off of my trousers. When I looked up again, he was still watching me, causing my blush to return, full power.

"Why, Captain!" I finally proclaimed dramatically. "I think a walk would be lovely!"

Grinning, he held his arm out gallantly. I took it and nestled my hand in the crook of his elbow. He gently steered me toward the edge of the clusters of inhabited foxholes and we meandered slowly. After a few moments of silence, he finally spoke.

"Those two weren't really asleep, were they?"

I cut my eyes sideways to see his boyish grin. A smile spread across my own lips.

"Not at all."

He nodded, grin widening. "Didn't think so. They're terrible actors, by the way. Maybe someone should tell them."

"Oh, no," I giggled quietly. "Let them go on believing they're good. Trust me, they'll be a lot happier that way." He chuckled, enticing another set of giggles from me.

We continued in silence for a while, listening to the snow crunching under our boots, to clumps of snow falling in soft thumps to the frozen ground below. Farther away was the noise of chatter from the occupied foxholes. Winter made nature seem muted and slow but the rest of us, somehow, more alive. We focused, every moment of every day, on our surroundings and on each other. We focused on surviving, on _living_, for just one more moment at a time. The frigid air branded our lungs, making us notice every breath. The constant cold made us appreciate the warmth of life so much more.

"Mallory," Lewis's voice broke through my pondering. I turned to him expectantly. "I've been wanting to tell you something, but I'm not quite sure how to put it without sounding crazy."

I smiled gently and nudged his shoulder with mine. "Three girls from the 21st century are currently in the midst of World War Two, Lewis. I think whatever you have to say can't be too much crazier than that."

He offered me a small smile. "Sometimes I almost forget about that," he admitted. He squared his shoulders, looking off into the snowy distance ahead of us. "It kind of relates, though, your appearance from another time." I must have looked puzzled when he glanced back at me, so he took a breath and carried on. "It's about me and Faye."

I suddenly felt even colder than usual; my stomach dropped. So all of the time they spent together, the whispered conversations I'd witnessed… I felt sick, but not surprised. Something like this was bound to happen sooner or later.

"I think she's my sister," he continued, unaware of my inner turmoil. I almost didn't hear him.

"What?" I replied, a bit stupidly, blinking in confusion. He looked over at me again, brown eyes earnest.

"I think," he repeated before pausing in thought. "No, I _know _she's my sister."

I stopped walking, suddenly feeling extremely foolish. His _sister_! How could I have even considered that Faye would pursue a relationship with him when I was so obviously and hopelessly enamored? The hot flush of shame crept up my neck. I fidgeted, pulling my scarf higher up my neck to hide it. "Explain, please," I mumbled, pulling him to sit on a fallen tree.

Once settled, he angled his body to face me, taking one of my gloved hands in his. It wasn't complete contact, but even the feel of his skin on my exposed fingertips was almost enough to replace the lingering feelings of shame with butterflies. When he began to absently stroke the small part of exposed skin on the underside of my wrist, I admit, I almost completely forgot what we were even talking about.

"I'm sure you know even better than I how Faye was found when she was seven," he began softly. I nodded lightly, using all of my willpower to focus on his words and not his fingers. "Well then you should know that she was found with a picture."

I looked up at him, nodding when I met his eyes. "Yeah, of course. Faye and Lewis. She used to take it out and stare at it for hours at a time. The Eiflers even named her after Little Faye."

Using his free hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded photograph. He held it out to me, letting go of my other hand so I could take it and unfold it. I mourned the loss of contact, but took it anyways. As I smoothed out the folds against my thigh, I found myself staring at Little Faye and her Lewis. They looked exactly the same as I remembered them from my Faye's picture; the only problem was that they were standing in front of two well-dressed, dark haired adults whom I assumed to be their parents.

I was flabbergasted. "How do you have this picture? How could Little Faye and Lewis be in your picture and in hers?" It clicked before he even started speaking. I answered myself. "Oh my god." I looked up at him and then back to the picture. "_You're _Little Lewis. That means that you're somehow connected to Little Faye, and my Faye."

He gently took the picture from my limp hand and studied it for a moment.

"The girl in this picture, Little Faye as you call her, she's my sister."

I studied his profile. His eyes were riveted on Little Faye's face.

"And you think that my Faye is your Faye too."

He nodded, looking back up at me. "When I was thirteen and Faye was seven, our house caught fire in the middle of the night. I got Faye out of the house, but she got away from me and ran back in because she forgot her favorite stuffed animal. I tried to go in after her, but our nanny caught me. She started to go in herself, but the house collapsed before she even got to the door." He swallowed hard. I took his hands in mine, wishing I could ease the pain he obviously still felt. "Faye was still inside. They managed to put out the flames soon after and went searching through the wreckage as soon as it was safe, but she was nowhere to be found. There was no body and no stuffed animal. We never even found any of the jewelry she had been wearing; there was no trace of her."

I squeezed his hands gently, taking my own chance to rub soothing circles into their pale backs. How terrible it must have been for him and their parents, to live for so long with no closure.

"Anyways," He continued after clearing his throat, "I talked to Faye a while ago and she asked me why I look so familiar. We talked about the picture and she told me that she has no memory of her childhood before her adoptive grandparents found her. She told me that her earliest memory is being surrounded by fire." That part, at least, was news to me. "What really convinced me, though, is that she accused me of something –a bit mean, I'll admit– that I had done to my sister years ago that no one knew about but the two of us. I used to tease her about her stuffed animal all the time, and once she climbed up a tree and got stuck for over an hour before I found her." He gave me a small smile, eyes slightly hazy with memories. "She was so defensive about that stupid raccoon."

"Hey," I replied, nudging him with a smile. "Wally is not stupid."

He laughed loudly, breaking the almost reverential silence that surrounded us. "That's exactly what she used to say." He sat, hands still in mine, looking at the snow that fell lightly around us. "So you believe me?" He asked quietly after a few moments, meeting my eyes earnestly.

I held his eyes for a few minutes, thinking it over. Did I believe that Faye was his long-lost sister? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I did. The little things I had noticed over the past few days of seeing them together made so much more sense. The facial expressions, the little habits… Even the tattered raccoon named Wally.

"I think I do," I finally admitted with a small smile. "It makes too much sense, and, I mean, if Violet and I have traveled in time once, who's to say that Faye couldn't do it twice?"

His smile lit up the night around us. He stood up suddenly, pulling me with him by our still-joined hands. Once I was on my feet, he picked me up and spun me around with another laugh. My arms wrapped tightly around his neck and I giggled with him; his excitement was contagious.

"I found her, Mallory," he murmured into my hair when he set me back on my feet. "I thought I had lost her, but I found her again."

My body hummed with happiness. I was pleased that he was so happy, but I was also extremely aware of the fact that this was the most intimately he had ever held me. "I'm so happy for you, Lewis" I whispered into his neck, "really."

He pulled away after another minute or so and held both of my hands in his. His eyes burned into mine, leaving me with a feeling of slight breathlessness. He looked to be having an internal debate for a few moments before he finally smiled again. "Let's get you back," he suggested. "I'm sure your thespian friends will be worrying about you."

We only got as far as second platoon's cluster of foxholes, however, before Lip appeared and announced that Lewis was wanted in CP. With a rueful grin, Lewis trudged off, but only after Lip offered to escort me back to our foxhole.

"How are you doing, Lip?" I asked the sergeant as we weaved our way through the foxholes.

"Surviving," he replied with a small smile. "Just like everyone else, ma'am."

I flapped a hand at him with a snort. "Oh, please," I scolded him lightly. "I'm freezing my tits off just like the rest of you fine gentlemen. There is absolutely no need to call me 'ma'am.' Besides," I added as an afterthought, "Ma'am makes me feel old. I call my mother 'ma'am.' Call me Mallory, or Mal, whichever suits your fancy."

The man chuckled. "Sure thing, Mallory."

I beamed at him. "There! Isn't that a lot better?"

"Whatever you say, ma'am."

We had reached the foxhole I shared with my girls at this point, so I merely stuck my tongue out at him before thanking him for the escort.

"It was no trouble at all," he replied with another small smile. "I was going to check on the men anyways, make sure they're all still alive, and your company is always appreciated."

I swatted at him playfully. "Flatterer," I accused with a grin. His smile widened in return. "Well, I won't keep you. Sleep well, Lip. Give the boys my regards."

"I'll do that. Stay safe, Mallory."

The amiable sergeant tipped his helmet to me and wandered off into the night, leaving me to nudge aside the pine branches covering our foxhole and slide in. After I rearranged the branches so that they offered full cover once more, I turned to scoot into the underground room. Both Violet and Faye, unsurprisingly, were still awake and waiting for me.

"So…" Violet drawled.

"How did it go?!" Faye squealed. "Did he kiss you yet?"

I blushed and batted at them both. "No, he didn't kiss me," I admitted, face burning. "I think he might have been thinking about it, though."

Faye giggled and squealed again, while Violet merely smirked smugly.

"But," I continued matter-of-factly, "He did happen to tell me about your secret relationship, miss thing."

Violet gaped openly at the fidgeting Faye.

"What?!" She exclaimed in shock. "I mean, _what_?!" She looked over at me in disbelief. "Please tell me I just heard you wrong."

I folded my legs under me and wiggled a little to get comfortable. "Oh, no, my dear Violet. You heard me exactly right. Tell her, Faye."

Looking slightly abashed, Faye confessed what I had just moments ago learned myself. When she finally finished her story, Violet just sat quietly, frowning.

"Violet?" Faye asked tentatively, reaching out to touch her shoulder. The girl in question simply blinked at the youngest of our trio.

"The world makes so much more sense now," she said slowly.

I chuckled. "I know, right? They make the same faces and everything."

Violet nodded sagely, crossing her arms. "And they both do the hair thing all the time."

Faye looked puzzled.

"Wait, what hair thing?"

* * *

Christmas Eve morning started out like all of the other mornings. Everyone was sluggish and reluctant to wake because consciousness meant an awareness of the cold. Unfortunately, things had to take a turn for the worse. It was barely past 0830 when a shot echoed through the trees, startling me completely awake. I had fallen asleep just before 0700, when Violet woke up and went to get some breakfast, but now I was wide awake.

They cry for a medic was far away, much closer to Eugene and Spina than it was to me, so I sat back and waited with bated breath for another shout. None followed, so I stayed put. Still on edge even ten minutes later, I almost screamed when Violet dropped into the hole with a heavy thud.

"Shit, sorry!" She cried upon seeing my face.

"Who?" I asked shakily in reply.

Her mouth tightened into a thin line. "Smokey Gordon."

I swore softly. "God damn it, I almost forgot about him. Is he paralyzed?"

Violet nodded grimly before crawling into our little cave. "Now we just have to wait out the rest of the German attack. Harry will be evacuated later tonight as well."

"But we don't lose anyone for good?" I hadn't realized that Faye was awake. Violet shook her head. "Just Germans today."

We all exhaled a sigh of relief. Eventually the call would come, and we would answer, but until then, all we could do was wait.

* * *

Faye and I were scrubbing our hands clean of blood in a patch of clean snow when we caught sight of Colonel Sink approaching in his Jeep. Wiping our stiff and frozen hands as dry as possible on our trousers, we looked at each other with a small smile and whispered, "Nuts!"

Giggling to ourselves, we joined Violet in the chow line. She greeted us with "Nuts!" and handed us our dinner tins. "Nuts!" we replied in unison, giggling once more. Popeye turned around halfway and looked at us strangely. We shrugged. He shrugged back and turned back around.

"I could sit down to a dinner of Turkey and Hooch back at the division CP," The Colonel said as he exited the jeep, newly parked behind us. "Damned if I don't like old Joe Domingus's rancid-ass beans better."

"You think he wants mine?" Violet murmured out of the corner of her mouth. "He can have them."

"Hello Easy Company," Sink greeted as he walked among the men. When he passed us, he tipped his helmet with a tiny smile. "Ladies."

"Hello, sir," we chimed back, smiling brightly at the older man. He nodded and continued on to Dick, who had just made his way to the front of the group.

"Hello, sir," He greeted the Colonel, arms crossed tightly over his chest in an attempt to retain some body heat. ("Poor baby looks so cold," Violet mused out loud. "Faye, go warm him up." Faye blushed brilliantly and flipped her off.)

"General McAuliffe sent a message to the entire division," Sink said. "Thought maybe your people'd like to hear it."

Winters gestured with a pale hand towards the men. "Well, that should be your prerogative, sir." Sink nodded.

"Men," he called, moving away from Dick and facing a part of our ragged group. We all wandered in a little closer to hear him better. "General McAuliffe wishes us all a 'Merry Christmas. What's merry about all this, ya ask? Just this: we've stopped cold everything that's been thrown at us from the North, East, South, and West. Now, two days ago, the German commander demanded our honorable surrender to save the USA encircled troops from total annihilation. The German commander received the following reply: 'To the German commander: NUTS!'"

The men laughed, shaking their heads. Violet, Faye and I looked at each other, grinning. "MURICA!" Faye whisper-shouted, pumping a fist, causing us to laugh. Dick, who had settled himself beside us, glanced over amusedly, one corner of his mouth pulling upwards. Faye blushed and smiled sheepishly up at him.

Sink wrapped up his message. "We're giving our country and loved ones at home a worthy Christmas present, and being privileged to take part in this gallant feat of arms, we're truly making for ourselves a merry Christmas.'" He folded the printed message back up and raised it to the crowd around him. "Merry Christmas to y'all, and God bless ya."

He was answered by a hearty chorus of "Nuts, sir!"

"NUTS!"

"Nuts! Nuts!"

* * *

After our not-so-traditional meal, a bunch of the men crowded around each other, sitting on empty ammo canisters, supply boxes, tree stumps, and the cold ground. Some of the more familiar faces included George Luz, Malark, Lieb, Joe Toye, Wild Bill, our pocket Italian Perconte, Skip Muck, and Penkala. Violet sat on the ground with her back against a tree trunk while Faye sat on a felled tree in between Lieb and Bill. I sat on another log that someone had dragged over, only to be joined –to my great surprise and pleasure– by Lewis. He smiled at me, brown eyes bright, as Violet called out, "Alrighty, boys. How should we liven this little Christmas party up a bit?"

"Tell us a story!" Perco called from the other side of the group. The rest of the men echoed the request.

"Tell us the one about Colin and his fondness of men!" Faye shouted excitedly from where she was curled into Lieb's side. The men guffawed or gave open-mouthed grins as their minds took that idea and ran with it. I hid my smile in Lewis's shoulder, remembering the very first time Violet told Faye and me that particular tale.

Violet, predictably, groaned and let her head fall back against the trunk of the tree she was leaning against. "Not that one again! You've heard it a thousand times, you big slut."

Faye smiled sweetly. "I know I have, but _they_ haven't." She gestured to the men around us before throwing her arm around Bill, who ruffled her hair lightly in return, earning himself a half-hearted swat. The men all took their cue to plead and whine, but it wasn't until George leaned his head on her shoulder, bottom lip protruding in a quivering pout and brown eyes sparkling up at her that she started to crack.

No one could resist George's puppy-dog face, not even Violet.

After a few moments of chilly silence, she finally threw up her hands with a cry of mock exasperation.

"Fine! Fine! I give; just stop looking at me like that!"

Faye and George high-fived, grins brightening their equally pale faces. I smiled and settled back against Lewis, feeling warm (or as warm as one could ever feel in Bastogne) when his arm, hidden to our companions, found its way around my waist. Some of the men leaned forward, eager to hear the story, when Violet cleared her throat dramatically.

"Well," she began thoughtfully, "when I was twenty or so, I dated a guy named Colin." She waited patiently for the wolf-whistles to die, smirking. "Yeah, yeah, I dated a guy. Get over it. Anyways, I dated this guy named Colin. We had been going steady for about six or seven months when, one night, he came over for a date. We had a very romantic dinner, watched a movie…. You know how it goes."

She winked at Malark, who blushed almost as red as his hair. The boys laughed and nudged the poor Mick, who shoved them back bashfully. Violet shushed them lightly before continuing.

"Well, about halfway through the movie, we started to, uh," she fidgeted a little, "'fool around'."

The men once again started to hoot and holler and whistle. Next to my ear, Lewis chuckled quietly, causing me to smile in return and snuggle into his side. His arm tightened around my waist. I flushed with contentment.

Violet's face was uncharacteristically pink as she finally came around to the end of the story.

"So I'm in the kitchen, barely awake and slouching over my coffee, when he comes into the room and looks at me. Doesn't say anything; just looks at me. After about five minutes of staring, he opens his mouth, but he just closes it again. I know he needs to say something important, but it's five in the morning and I can't even remember my name that early."

I shook my head, chuckling, because it was absolutely true. Violet was a complete undead monster in the morning.

"So he opens his mouth again, still looking at me with these wide eyes, and he just blurts, 'I think I'm gay.' And he leaves."

At this point, the men are laughing so loudly that the Germans could probably snipe us all with their eyes closed, but none of us had the heart to shush them.

"But it's still too damn early for me, so I just put my head on the counter and take a nap."

Perco and George were practically rolling on the ground when Faye piped in, "And that's how we found her at three in the afternoon, drooling all over the counter."

The men howled with laughter once more before taking it upon themselves to tell their own stories from home and basic.

* * *

**3****rd**** Person POV**

As the men continued to swap stories, Mallory was the only one to notice Faye quietly get up and slip over to the passing Richard Winters. The captain looked slightly surprised at her sudden appearance, but smiled nonetheless when she slipped her arm through his and proceeded to walk with him toward CP. Mallory smiled, pleased that he and Faye seemed to be forming a closer, albeit still shy and reserved, relationship. After waiting until the pair was out of sight, she stood, tugging the intelligence officer up with her, and slowly began the trek back to CP.

The forest was silent; all of the men, besides those watching the line, were in clusters like the one they had just left, seeking friendly company on Christmas Eve.

"Are we going to spy on them?" Nixon asked Mallory as they tramped through the snow. Apparently, she wasn't the only one to have noticed the two slip away before them. Mallory turned to face him, still walking, cheeks rosy from the cold.

"Why of course we are!" She exclaimed, waving her arms, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Those two are going off to be all cute and stuff and I'm _not_ going to miss it!"

She continued on towards CP. Nixon, behind her, stopped for a moment, watching her with a small smile on his face. After a second, he shook his head lightly and followed the excited girl. When he finally caught up to her, she was peeking into CP with the brightest smile he had ever seen. She waved at him to come closer. He did.

When he close enough to peek inside as well, the sight that met his eyes warmed his heart. His shy best friend held his sister in his arms as they swayed lightly to the music that the young girl was humming. Faye's head was on Dick's chest and both had their eyes closed as they danced together on Christmas Eve.

Without a word of warning, Lewis Nixon took Mallory's hand and pulled her away from CP and into his arms. Mallory let out a small gasp of surprise, which soon turned into a silent giggle when Lewis spun and dipped her. He was grinning roguishly as he danced her through the falling snow, and her heart had never felt lighter.

"Dance lessons, Lewis?" she murmured amusedly as she came in from another spin.

His grin grew. "Five years," he replied, dipping her once more before suddenly pulling her close.

Mallory gasped again and reflexively threw an arm around his neck for support. Both of his were around her waist, holding her tightly. She looked up into his sparkling brown eyes and felt all of the breath leave her. Her eyes darted to his lips. They were slightly chapped, as were everyone's, but full. Slowly, her gaze travelled back up to his waiting eyes. His face moved closer; his nose was brushing hers. He held her eyes for a moment longer before slowly leaning in.

_Oh my god, _Mallory thought. _He's going to kiss me. _

Her eyes fluttered shut and she tipped her face upward a little more.

_**He's also married.**_

Her breath hitched, causing her to flinch away from him. Lewis swiftly pulled away, looking anxious. Before he could say anything, Mallory had already pulled away from him and gasped, "I can't." She couldn't meet his eyes. "I'm sorry...I just can't."

Her boots crunched loudly as she fled, hair whipping behind her, leaving Lewis alone in the snow. Focused on her escape, she failed to notice his hissed curses and the angry kick he aimed at the nearest tree.

Mallory wasn't even halfway back to her foxhole when the artillery came.

* * *

If Buck Compton was surprised to see a ginger roll into his foxhole, he didn't show it. He merely helped Mallory sit upright and placed her helmet back on her head before pushing her farther into the hole, shielding her with his body as best he could. Mortars exploded around them, briefly lighting up the trees with dizzying flashes. Shrapnel peppered the frozen ground and trees, but Mallory and Buck, when the barrage finally ended, escaped unharmed.

Waiting for what seemed like an eternity after the last mortar fell, Buck finally let Mallory get up. She checked to make sure she still had all of the contents of her Medic bag before crouching down beside the blonde. She wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace and whispered "Thank you," before hopping out of the foxhole. Buck didn't have to say anything; they both knew that Mallory would put her life on the line for him, as he had just done for her. With a final nod, Mallory straightened her helmet and started running towards the nearest cry for help.

* * *

As Mallory slowly wove her way through the foxholes, anxious to return to the safety and solitude of her own, she was accosted by Malarkey and Skip.

"Hey Mal!" Malark called from their foxhole. "Come join us! Spread a little Christmas Cheer! We need a little, after that hailstorm."

Mallory was sorely tempted to decline and scurry back to her foxhole, but the boys looked so earnest that she couldn't find it in her to refuse them a little company.

"Alright, alright," she sighed, sliding into the hole. The boys cheered and scooted over to give her some room, pulling their shared blanket and poncho over her legs and passing over a cup of weak coffee that she assumed –judging by the steaming helmet next to Skip- they had just brewed.

"Thanks guys," she murmured, dipping her nose close to the steam and closing her eyes in appreciation. The taste of the coffee wasn't nearly as satisfying as the warmth, but it would have to do. Sighing, she closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the side of the foxhole.

"Hey," Malarkey asked gently, "You okay, Mal?"

She reached out and patted his arm. "I'm fine, Don, thanks. Just a little tired and missing home is all." It was only mostly a lie; she _was_ tired, and she _did_ miss living together with her girls in their little house. She missed not having to stick her hands into wounds frothing with blood; the only time they were ever warm in Bastogne. She missed not having to worry about everyone around her, missed not knowing when and how they were going to die. She missed living life without having known anyone who had died younger than sixty. She missed not being in love.

As the boys next to her continued to chat, having obviously accepted her answer, she turned the thought over in her mind. Being with Roger had never made her feel like she did now. Roger was handsome, to be sure. He was also flashy, which (she was ashamed to admit) is what attracted her in the first place. She loved being wanted by him and enjoyed his physicality. They fell in love quickly and fell out of it just as fast. She was in love with the idea of him, she had long ago realized, but when she got to know the real Roger, love turned into disgust, fear, and loathing.

Lewis Nixon, however, was a whole different enchilada. The very thought of him made Mallory feel a raging swarm of butterflies. When she was with him, she felt at peace and excited and nervous, and happy all at the same time. She yearned to know everything about him, his deepest thoughts and his happiest memories. She wanted to see him laugh and smile, wanted to ease his worries and take away his pain. She had seen him in some of the darkest times imaginable, and not even a world war could bring out a side of him that made her afraid; she didn't believe for one minute that he would ever hurt her. The way he looked at her made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. She would be happy just to stand by his side for the rest of her life.

And yet, when he wanted to kiss her, she ran like a coward. It wasn't that she didn't want to kiss him. No, that was most certainly _not _the case (quite the opposite, in fact). She simply let her fear get the best of her once more. Yes, he was married, but he didn't love his wife. She had overheard him tell Dick that he had never loved her when they were still in Holland. It was a marriage of convenience arranged by their parents. Despite all of that, Mallory was still afraid of being hurt. Lewis didn't know about her past, what she had been through. Mallory was used and damaged goods that Roger hadn't even seen fit to return. Instead, she went straight to the trash bin. Now she was ruined for life; the bin had left a permanent scar. Lewis Nixon was a good man, and good men didn't need girls like Mallory Cutler.

"Hey Mal!" The soft voice belonged to none other that Wild Bill.

Mallory shook her head to clear her thoughts and rose to her knees, peering up over the edge of the foxhole at the Philly native in the adjacent hole. "Yeah, Bill?"

His bright brown eyes, resting just above the edge of his own hole, met hers.

"Can I ask ya a favor?"

"Yeah, Bill. Of course."

He looked slightly bashful –a very uncharacteristic look for him– before he spoke again. "Seein' as how it's Christmas mornin' and all…" He trailed off. Mallory glanced at her watch. It had been Christmas for a whole seven minutes without her even knowing.

"Could you sing Ave Maria?"

Mallory looked back to Bill, who was watching her. He must have felt the need to explain, because he quickly added, "My ma dragged us to the midnight service every year for as long as I can remember. The service always ends with Ave Maria and, well, it just wouldn't feel right to have a Christmas without it."

Mallory was slightly stunned. Who knew that Wild Bill Guarnere was sentimental? Smiling gently, she pulled herself out of the hole to sit on the edge. When she cleared her throat, Bill slid back into his foxhole. Mallory closed her eyes and allowed the frigid air to burn her lungs as she inhaled.

The forest quickly fell silent as Mallory's voice wove its way through the night. The negative energy caused by the artillery attack had the men even more stressed and edgy, but they all stilled to listen. Men as far as Able Company swore, many years later, that even though they couldn't hear the music, every man felt it. The men of Easy Company, however, heard every note and, for those few moments in Bastogne, felt at peace.

* * *

**Dear lord, it's finally done. I've been working on this chapter in bits and pieces. I wrote the beginning literally about three months ago but most of it came from these past few days. Once more, I'm so sorry to have taken so long to update. **

**Just a quick note: I wrote most of this chapter off of the book and not the show, so if anything seems off, that's probably why. **

**Thank you for sticking with me for so long, dear readers. I'd hug you all if I could. You're beautiful, really.**

**-Zoe**


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